Trump threatens to ‘blow Iran off the face of the earth’ over shots at ships after declaring ‘Project Freedom’ to end stranglehold in the Strait

Donald Trump’s bid to reopen the Strait of Hormuz yesterday risked reigniting war in the Middle East.

After confirming that Iran had fired “shots” at ships, the US president warned Tehran that it would be “blown off the face of the earth” if it attacked US ships in the Gulf.

And for the first time since the uneasy ceasefire took effect last month, air raid sirens sounded across the region, with the mullahs launching a series of rocket and drone attacks on the UAE.

Fifteen Iranian missiles were intercepted, while drones struck an empty oil tanker in the Strait and attacked the country’s oil fields again, pushing the price of a barrel of crude back up to £85.

“Project Freedom,” as it is called by the White House, brought a day of claims and counterclaims.

The US said it had successfully escorted two ships through the vital waterway, something Tehran described as “lies”.

On Tuesday, Danish cargo giant Maersk said one of its ships had successfully sailed through the Strait of Hormuz under American escort.

The ship, the US-flagged Alliance Fairfax, had been stuck in the Gulf since the war broke out in February and was “offered the opportunity” to leave under US military escort.

Donald Trump warned Tehran on Monday that it would be ‘blown off the face of the earth’ if it attacked US ships in the Gulf

The US claimed it had successfully escorted two ships through the Strait – something Iran later labeled as “lies”.

The company confirmed the ship made the journey “without incident.”

Iran previously said it had fired missiles at US destroyers, but this was denied by Washington. Up to 2,000 ships remain stuck in the waterway, with some 20,000 crew members, and the Islamic Republic has vowed to enforce its blockade “with full force.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said: “The events in Hormuz make it clear that there is no military solution to a political crisis.”

He added: “Project freedom is project deadlock.”

In a post on social media, Trump urged South Korea to join his project after saying one of the country’s ships had been shot down by Iran.

He wrote: “Iran has fired some shots at unrelated countries related to the ship movement, Project Freedom, including a South Korean cargo ship.

“Maybe it’s time for South Korea to join the mission! We shot down seven small boats, or, as they like to call them, “fast” boats. It’s all they have left.’

He added: “Other than the South Korean ship, there has been no damage caused through the Strait at this time.”

Trump said Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine will hold a news conference on Tuesday.

Iran’s attack on the UAE tanker was in stark contrast to the president’s claim that there was “no cross-strait damage” caused except to the South Korean ship.

Iranian Major General Ali Abdollahi stressed that Tehran “maintains and firmly manages the security of the Strait of Hormuz with full force.”

He told ships to “refrain from any transit” without Iranian permission, as a senior UAE official said the threats “cannot be ignored.”

But US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News that his country has “absolute control” of the Strait.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said its “guided missile destroyers” had crossed the waterway and as a “first step” two US-flagged merchant ships had been guided through it.

Iran had previously claimed to have struck a US warship and turned it around, before later saying it had only fired “warning shots” after Washington strongly denied its navy had been hit.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) rejected CENTCOM’s statement, saying: “No commercial ships or oil tankers have passed through the Strait of Hormuz in the past few hours, and the claims made by US officials are baseless and completely false.”

When Trump announced Project Freedom on Sunday to guide ships “safely” out of the Strait, oil prices fell, but yesterday’s strikes caused them to rise again by 2 percent. Shipping bosses said the situation remained too uncertain and complained about a lack of detail on how the US plan would work in practice.

German company Hapag-Lloyd said last night that its risk assessments ‘remain unchanged’ and that the Strait ‘remains closed to Hapag-Lloyd transit until further notice’.

Project Freedom is the latest attempt to influence hardline leaders in Tehran, who are feeling increasingly positive about the direction of the war.

Iran is now pushing the US to postpone talks on its nuclear ambitions in exchange for opening the waterway, which would mean a capitulation to America. Mr Trump has indicated he would reject the proposal and yesterday the Islamic Republic reviewed a 14-point response from the US.

But the regime taunted Washington, with the IRGC’s intelligence unit saying “the space for American decision-making has narrowed.”

It stated that Trump must choose between “an impossible military operation or a bad deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the “priority is to end the war” but blamed the US for a lack of progress. He added: “The other side must commit to a reasonable approach.”

Trump vowed to “blow Iran off the face of the earth if it attacks American ships carrying out Project Freedom,” and told Fox News he believes Tehran has become much more malleable in negotiations.

He said: ‘We have more weapons and ammunition of much higher quality than before. We have the best equipment. We have stuff all over the world… bases all over the world. We can use all that stuff – and we will, if we need it.”

The US also claimed to have sunk six Iranian small boats near the Strait of Hormuz.

CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said Iran typically deploys “between 20 and 40 small boats” in harassing ships.

“Today we saw only six and quickly eliminated them,” he added.