Trump: Iran will be wiped off the face of the Earth if it attacks the US

US President Donald Trump threatened in an interview with Fox News that Iran “will be wiped off the face of the Earth” if it attacks US forces helping to navigate the Strait of Hormuz. At the same time, he assessed that the Iranians are now more flexible in negotiations.

As reported by Fox News journalist Trey Yingst, who spoke with Trump by phone, the US president threatened to “wipe the Iranians off the face of the earth” if they attacked American ships. Trump assured that the US had replenished its stocks of some types of ammunition.

“We have more weapons and much higher quality ammunition than before,” Trump said. – We have the best equipment. We have it all over the world. We have bases all over the world. All are equipped with equipment. We can use it and we will do so if necessary, he declared.

At the same time, he assessed that – in his opinion – Iran had become “much more susceptible to influence” in peace negotiations.

Previously, the commander of US forces in the Middle East, Adm. Brad Cooper reported that on Monday, Iranian forces carried out several attacks using cruise missiles, drones and attack boats on US ships and merchant ships in the Strait of Hormuz. As a result, the US was to sink six of these boats. Cooper declined to assess the effects of the Iranian attacks or to answer whether the exchange of fire constituted a violation or end of the ongoing truce.

Trump, in turn, referred to the attack on a South Korean cargo ship, encouraging the authorities in Seoul to “join the mission.”

“Maybe it's time for South Korea to join the mission! We have destroyed seven small boats, or 'fast' boats as they call them. That's all they have left. Apart from the South Korean ship, no damage has been reported while crossing the strait so far,” the president wrote in a message on Truth Social.

Authorities are investigating the cause of an explosion and fire on a ship in the Strait of Hormuz

South Korean authorities and the shipping company HMM are investigating reports of Monday's explosion and fire on board a South Korean bulk carrier in the Strait of Hormuz, Yonhap news agency reported. According to the government in Seoul, the hull of the vessel was damaged, but none of the approximately 20 crew were injured.

“Along with the dull sound of an explosion of unknown cause, a fire broke out, which the crew is still trying to extinguish,” said a representative of the HMM shipowner, quoted by Yonhap. He noted that the left side near the ship's engine room was damaged. He added that the sailors do not know the source of the incident, which is why the company is cautious about calling the event an “external attack.”

“The Department of Consular Affairs is verifying information whether our (South Korean) ship was hit. We have initially confirmed that there are no casualties among our citizens,” said the representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul. There were six South Korean citizens on board the vessel, anchored in the Umm al-Qaywain region in the north of the United Arab Emirates. The nationalities of the remaining crew members were not disclosed.

“We are currently investigating the cause of the fire on the ship,” said a representative of the presidential palace.

The government in Seoul requested emergency support from the UAE authorities.

The incident coincided with the launch of Operation Project Freedom by the United States to escort ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz region. The Iranian side condemned the actions announced on Sunday by US President Donald Trump, considering them a violation of the ceasefire.

From Washington Oskar Górzyński (PAP)

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