Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has deployed additional naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz this week, escalating the military standoff in the world’s most critical oil chokepoint as the U.S. tightens its naval blockade, sources confirmed Thursday. The move prompted President Trump to order American forces to “shoot and kill” any Iranian mine-laying boats with “no hesitation.”
The new mining operation marks the second Iranian deployment since the war began, with uncertainty remaining about whether all mines from the first round have been cleared. U.S. intelligence detected the operation but declined to disclose the number of new devices deployed. Experts previously estimated fewer than 100 mines in the waterway; the current total now exceeds that figure.
Iranian forces are using small Gashti vessels—fishing-boat-sized craft capable of carrying two to four mines each—to lay devices in the narrow strait. Despite American claims of destroying over 90 percent of large mine-laying vessels at war’s outset, scores of these smaller craft remain operational and can be equipped with rocket launchers and machine guns.
The USS George H.W. Bush carrier strike group arrived Thursday in CENTCOM’s area of responsibility, becoming the third American carrier in the region alongside the Abraham Lincoln and existing strike forces. This concentration provides substantial combat power for blockade enforcement and potential strike operations. CENTCOM has redirected 33 vessels since blockade commencement.
Trump ordered mine countermeasure operations “tripled up,” with USS Chief and USS Pioneer potentially joining underwater drones, special mine-hunting helicopters, and surveillance aircraft in clearance efforts. The International Energy Agency has characterized the resulting supply disruption as the largest in global market history, exceeding 1970s oil shocks.
