Donald Trump says US forces ‘obliterated’ military targets on Iranian island

President Donald Trump said US forces had “obliterated” military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island — hours after the American military said it has ordered 2,500 Marines and an amphibious assault ship to the Middle East.

Kharg Island is the primary terminal that handles Iran’s oil exports and Mr Trump warned that the island’s oil infrastructure could be next.

Announcing the action in a social media post, the president said: “Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island.

“For reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island. However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”

In a later post, Mr Trump said: “Iran had plans of taking over the entire Middle East, and completely obliterating Israel. JUST LIKE IRAN ITSELF, THOSE PLANS ARE NOW DEAD!”

Iran’s parliament speaker warned on Thursday that attacks on the Persian Gulf islands on Iran’s southern maritime frontier would provoke a new level of retaliation, underscoring how central they are to the country’s economy and security.

In a social media post, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said Iran “will abandon all restraint” if the islands come under attack and said Trump will be responsible for “the blood of American soldiers”.

Asked during a Fox News Radio interview — which was recorded on Thursday night and aired the following morning — whether he was thinking about seizing the island, the president said it was “not high on the list” but also he could “change my mind in seconds”.

The question appeared to touch a nerve, eliciting scorn as Mr Trump called it a question that should not be asked.

“Who’d ask a question like that, and what fool would answer it?” he said. “Let’s say I was going to do it or let’s say I wasn’t going to do it, why would I tell you?”

Mr Trump said the war would end “when I feel it in my bones”. He was also more measured about the prospect of opponents toppling the Islamic government.

“So I really think that’s a big hurdle to climb for people that don’t have weapons,” Mr Trump said, citing Iran’s paramilitary Basij force, which has played a central role in crushing recent nationwide protests.

Asked by a reporter if he had discussed the war with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, the president said, “I have, and we’re discussing a couple of different things with him. Not only that, but other things”.

Israel’s military said Iran had launched missiles, with sirens sounding in Jerusalem; Qatar’s defence ministry said early on Saturday it had intercepted a missile attack.

The ministry said earlier that authorities were evacuating “a number” of areas as a temporary precaution, without identifying the locations. Emergency alerts were sent to people’s phones.

An Israeli strike hit a health care centre in the village of Burj Qalaouiyah in the Bint Jbeil District, killing 12 doctors, paramedics and nurses who were on duty, Lebanon’s health ministry said.

The toll was preliminary as rescue teams continued searching for missing people, it added.

The ministry said it was the second attack on the health sector within hours, after another Israeli strike on the southern village of Souaneh killed two paramedics and wounded five others when it hit a paramedic centre.

Marine Expeditionary Units are trained and equipped to conduct amphibious landings, but they also specialise in bolstering security at embassies, evacuating civilians and disaster relief.

The deployment does not necessarily indicate that a ground operation is imminent or will take place at all.

The deployment of the additional marines was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, as well the Tripoli and other amphibious assault ships carrying the marines, are based in Japan and have been at sea in the Pacific Ocean for several days, according to images released by the military.

The Tripoli was spotted by commercial satellites sailing alone near Taiwan. That location puts it more than a week away from the waters off Iran.

Earlier in the week, the Navy had 12 ships, including the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and eight destroyers, operating in the Arabian Sea. Should the Tripoli join this flotilla, it would be the second-largest ship behind the Lincoln to operate in the waters off Iran.

While the total number of US service members on the ground in the Middle East is not clear, Al-Udeid Air Base alone, one of the largest in the region, typically houses some 8,000 US troops.

The US military confirmed on Friday that all six crew members of an American KC-135 refuelling plane were killed when it crashed in Iraq, bringing the US death toll to at least 13 service members.

In Washington, US defence secretary Pete Hegseth said more than 15,000 enemy targets have been struck, which is more than 1,000 a day since the war began.

He also sought to address concerns about the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, telling reporters: “We have been dealing with it and don’t need to worry about it.”

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Thursday vowed to continue the attacks and keep the strait closed in his first public statement since succeeding his father, who was killed in the opening day of the war.

Mr Khamenei has not been seen in public since taking over leadership and released a written statement.

Mr Hegseth said Mr Khamenei “is wounded and likely disfigured”, without providing evidence or elaborating. Israel suspects Mr Khamenei was wounded at the start of the war.