Trump on Twitter tells US Navy to ‘shoot down and destroy’ Iranian boats that harass US ships
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It’s unclear if Trump’s tweet amounts to a standing order, and whether Central Command, which oversees operations in the Middle East, would fire upon an Iranian boat. Such an order would further raise the possibility of a miscalculation between the two longtime foes, which nearly went to war earlier this year after the US killed a top Iranian military commander.
CNN has reached out to the Pentagon and White House for additional comment.
The video of the incident appears to show multiple Iranian-flagged vessels, with men manning guns at the front of those ships, passing in front of a US naval vessel. The guns do not appear to be pointed at the ship, which sounded a horn multiple times as the Iranian vessels approached.
On Sunday, Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps acknowledged that an incident took place, but dismissed the US version of events as a “fake Hollywood tale,” in a statement published by the Iranian News Agency.
Roughly a half hour before Trump tweeted Wednesday, “Fox & Friends,” which Trump regularly watches, aired a segment about the incident, as well as a report on Iran launching its first military satellite into orbit. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the launch was successful, though CNN has not been able to independently verify that.
This story has been updated to include additional background information.
CNN’s Barbara Starr, Sara Mazloumsaki and Ramin Mostaghim contributed to this report.
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