Pentagon: Iran's missiles, not mines, pose main threat to Hormuz shipping
The top US defense official said US strikes this week destroyed Iran’s ability to manufacture new ballistic missiles.
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon’s top official pushed back Friday on news reports that the Trump administration failed to adequately prepare for Iran to lay naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz, adding that US officials have “no clear evidence” that the Islamic Republic had yet done so.
“We've heard them talk about taking various measures, and we're planning for all of them,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters at the Pentagon.
After nearly two weeks of focused strikes on Iran's command-and-control, radars and precision missile capabilities, US naval vessels and aircraft began striking minelayer boats earlier this week along Iran’s southern coast near the strait. US Central Command said on Thursday it had destroyed more than 50 minelayers and would continue to strike Iran’s naval mine warehouses and caches.
“We have a plan for every option here,” Hegseth said during a press briefing. “That’s not a strait we’re going to allow to remain contested, or with a lack of flow of commercial goods.”
