In a social media post on Thursday, Trump said the US military is ramping up mine-clearing operations in the narrow waterway, a crucial global oil transit route.

"I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be (Their naval ships are ALL, 159 of them, at the bottom of the sea!), that is putting mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz. There is to be no hesitation," said Trump in a post