WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump downplayed tensions after US warships entered the Strait of Hormuz on Monday and said that Iran had “taken some shots” but caused no harm apart from damage to a South Korean vessel.
“Other than the South Korean Ship, there has been, at this moment, no damage going through the Strait,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform as oil prices jumped over the renewed hostilities.
“Iran has taken some shots at unrelated Nations with respect to the Ship Movement, PROJECT FREEDOM, including a South Korean Cargo Ship,” Trump stated.
Trump said US forces had “shot down” seven small Iranian military boats.
“We’ve shot down seven small Boats or, as they like to call them, “fast” Boats. It’s all they have left. Other than the South Korean Ship, there has been, at this moment, no damage going through the Strait,” the US President added.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 4, 2026
Meanwhile, in an interview with FOX News on Monday, Trump warned that Iran would be “blown off the face of the Earth” if US vessels were attacked in the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump said that the US was better equipped than ever before.
“We have more weapons and ammunition at a much higher grade than we had before,” he said.
“We have the best equipment. We have stuff all over the world. We have these bases all over the world. They’re all stocked up with equipment. We can use all of that stuff, and we will, if we need it,” Trump added.
BREAKING: President Trump sends a new warning to the Iranian regime if it attacks any U.S. vessel working to implement Project Freedom:
“They’ll be blown off the face of the earth.”
Trump tells @TreyYingst that Iran has become "much more malleable" in talks.
“We have more… pic.twitter.com/bLqscDAgag
— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 4, 2026
A US admiral earlier said six such vessels were destroyed, but Tehran denied any had been sunk.
The developments have shaken the ceasefire between the US and Iran.
US warships are also moving through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday in what Trump says is an effort to protect shipping.
“Other than the South Korean Ship, there has been, at this moment, no damage going through the Strait,” Trump wrote.
US military destroys 6 Iranian boats
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Monday it destroyed six Iranian small boats in the Strait of Hormuz after they allegedly targeted commercial vessels.
The US military said the operation was carried out by military helicopters and guided-missile destroyers operating in the region.
Admiral Brad Cooper said US forces had “successfully neutralised” the threat posed to commercial shipping.
He said Iran had launched multiple cruise missiles, drones and small boats towards vessels under US protection, but added that “every one” of the threats had been defeated.
Meanwhile, Iran denied that the US military had sunk Iranian boats, state television reported.
“The US claim that it sank a number of Iranian war boats is false,” a senior Iranian military official was quoted as saying by state television Press TV.
Admiral Cooper told journalists that US Apache and Seahawk helicopters hit “six Iranian small boats threatening commercial shipping”.
US forces also “effectively engaged” all “missiles and drones that were fired at both us and the commercial ships,” Cooper said.
Some cruise missiles were launched at US Navy ships, but most of them, as well as multiple drones, targeted commercial vessels, he said.
“We defended both ourselves and, consistent with our commitment, we defended all the commercial ships,” Cooper said.
‘Project Freedom’
CENTCOM said the operation formed part of its maritime security initiative in the Gulf, where US warships on Monday transited the Strait of Hormuz under an escort mission announced by US President Donald Trump.
The US military said guided-missile destroyers were now operating in the Arabian Gulf as part of “Project Freedom”, aimed at restoring safe passage for commercial shipping.
The military added that two US-flagged merchant vessels had transited the Strait of Hormuz and were safely en route.
Iranian state media reported that its navy fired cruise missiles, rockets and drones as a “warning shot” near US warships in the Gulf after what it described as their “disregard” of initial warnings.
Earlier, Iran’s navy said it had issued warning shots following the entry of US destroyers into the region.
CENTCOM rejected Iranian claims that a US warship had been hit, calling the reports false.
The incident comes amid rising tensions over control of the Strait of Hormuz, a key global energy chokepoint through which around 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas flows.
US media reported that American naval forces would not directly escort commercial ships.
Tehran’s forces effectively closed the strait, a key route for oil and gas shipments, in response to the US-Israeli military campaign that began on February 28, while Washington is maintaining a blockade of Iranian ports.
Trump has indefinitely extended the initial two-week ceasefire brokered by Pakistan that brought a halt to the fighting, but the conflict — and its widespread economic fallout — remains unresolved.
Meanwhile, Iranian state media reported that Iran had prevented a US Navy destroyer from entering the Strait of Hormuz.
The reports included a claim from the Iranian military that it hit an American ship with two missiles, near Bandar-e-Jask on the Iranian coast.
However, soon after, US Central Command (CENTCOM) issued a statement, rejecting the Iranian media claims.
CENTCOM said no US ships had been struck and that US forces were supporting the operation, “and enforcing the naval blockade on Iranian ports”
The Iranian military earlier claimed that it had prevented a US Navy destroyer from entering the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency said a vessel was hit by two missiles as it was sailing through the Strait of Hormuz “in violation of traffic and shipping security”.
