President Donald Trump warned Tehran on Thursday morning the U.S. military is poised to attack Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT” and the country’s “oil infrastructure points” are in line for seizure.
A targeted operation to “assume total control” of Iran’s oil and gas markets alongside essential infrastructure, including taking Kharg Island, will occur “at some point in the not too distant future,” Trump vowed in a Truth Social post.
Trump compared the forthcoming action to the U.S. operations in Venezuela, “which is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the United States of America,” he wrote, while dismissing the armed forces left at Tehran’s disposal as “GONE.”
The U.S. assumed control of Venezuela’s oil sector after capturing then-president Nicolás Maduro in January.
Kharg Island lies off the coast of Iran and is home to a major oil terminal that is considered the country’s economic lifeline.
Taking the island could choke off Iran’s oil exports and provide a platform for the U.S. military to carry out attacks against the mainland, the BBC notes.
The U.S. could use the key coral island as leverage to compel the Iranians to keep the contested waters of the Strait of Hormuz open to general shipping traffic.
Kharg Island serves as the terminal for nearly all of Iran’s oil exports and has a loading capacity of about seven million barrels per day. (Elif Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Trump’s warning came after Tehran and the U.S. traded strikes overnight, as Breitbart News reported.
U.S. officials told multiple media outlets that Wednesday night’s operation targeted military infrastructure, including ammunition depots, command-and-control nodes, warehouses, air defense systems, and radar facilities.
The president had cautioned Tehran it would “pay the price” for dragging out negotiations aimed at ending the conflict.
He now appears to be delivering on that.