Donald Trump declared that he now views the Strait of Hormuz as “an American territory,” even as Iran’s president publicly appealed for an end to the bloodshed.
Reopening the strategically vital waterway has become central to Trump’s push to bring the Iran War to a close, with the conflict now nearing its six-month point.
Trump laid out his position during a South Carolina rally for Senator Darline Graham, using the campaign stop to underscore his hardline stance on the Strait.
The president told supporters that the US had “we down and we stopped” the Islamic Republic of Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, arguing that Tehran is now eager to negotiate.
“They want to make a deal so badly, we don’t even know if we want it because I view the Strait of Hormuz as an American territory right now. It’s an American territory,” Trump said.
Earlier Friday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in public comments that he believed it would be “better to end the war today while we are in a position of strength and dignity.”
Pezeshkian also insisted that Tehran offered no “concessions” to Washington when it signed a memorandum of understanding with Trump in June.
Still, conditions inside Iran are deteriorating, with citizens facing a deepening cost-of-living crisis as the country struggles to export oil, The Financial Times reported.
Donald Trump said that he considers the Strait of Hormuz ‘an American territory’ as the President of Iran begged for the bloodshed to end
Earlier Friday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (pictured) said in public remarks that he believes it would be ‘better to end the war today while we are in a position of strength and dignity’
Trump warned Thursday he will launch a campaign to crush Iran’s economy and threatened ‘tremendous’ punishment on any country that does business with Tehran.
The impact of the US attack that killed Ayatollah Khamenei is still there, as an Iranian Shiite cleric said Friday that they still smell ‘burned flesh’ near the ex-supreme leader’s compound.
‘Our leader had a frail body, but contrary to reports that seven or eight bombs were dropped on the site, they hit the Supreme Leader’s compound with 110 bombs and missiles,’ he told Iranian media.
‘Someone told me that when you go near the Supreme Leader’s compound, you can still smell burned flesh. I went there myself and found it was true — you can still smell burned flesh,’ the cleric said at a gathering of supporters in Tehran’s Tajrish Square.
Trump issued his latest threat on Wednesday night, writing on Truth Social: ‘Today, I am announcing the MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY! This will be Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale.
‘ANY country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran will itself face TREMENDOUS Economic Consequences.’
The President did not specify what punishment countries would face, and none other than Iran were mentioned by name.
He listed several activities that he said need to stop immediately: ‘oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries, front companies’.
The President has made the reopening of the waterway a key plank of ending the Iran War, as the conflict heads toward the six month mark
The impact of the US attack that killed Ayatollah Khamenei (pictured right) is still there, as an Iranian Shiite cleric said Friday that they still smell ‘burned flesh’ near the ex-supreme leader’s compound
The intensified economic pressure campaign comes as the war nears its sixth month with no immediate diplomatic or military off-ramp in sight and the vital Strait of Hormuz still significantly choked-off.
With November elections quickly approaching, the President is facing renewed domestic scrutiny over the war’s costs on US consumers and toll on the military.
Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, said in response that Trump’s plan was simply a ‘diversion’ from the US’ own crisis.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had similarly said last week that the US would soon be ramping up efforts at economically isolating Iran, as part of a two-pronged approach with a US naval blockade.
‘It will be a combination of economic isolation, like the world has never seen before,’ Bessent told conservative television network Newsmax.
The US Treasury has for months been carrying out an effort, dubbed Operation Economic Fury, aiming to cut off Iran’s funding with targeted sanctions.
Iran has struck a defiant tone, having survived months of US military operations that failed to bring a decisive end to the war.
The conflict broke out on February 28 with US-Israeli attacks on the Islamic republic, which retaliated with missile and drone strikes across the region.
Tehran’s missile and drone threat has severely curtailed shipping traffic through the Strait, as a framework US-Iran deal to reopen it collapsed.
In recent days, both sides have said messages were being exchanged, however Trump on Tuesday insisted talks were off and posted a message on social media suggesting the strait could be a ‘NEW US Territory.’
On Tuesday, the UAE announced that it was suspending all economic dealings with Iran after saying it had been targeted by two ballistic missiles.
The neighbors across the Gulf share deep cultural and historical ties, and the UAE – home to a sizable Iranian community – had been a major trading partner for US-sanctioned Iran, at least before the war.
‘We need all of our Allies to stand with the United States of America to isolate, and defeat, the Iran threat,’ Trump said Wednesday on Truth Social.
