US president says Mojtaba Khamenei is alive but “badly wounded,” as allies warn Strait of Hormuz is still not fully cleared of mines.
“I don’t think he’s dead”
Donald Trump has publicly questioned reports that Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was killed in the opening wave of US and Israeli strikes on the Islamic Republic, telling a conservative radio host that he does not believe the cleric is dead.
Speaking to Glenn Beck on Thursday morning, the US president claimed that Khamenei had suffered serious injuries but stopped short of confirming his death.
“I don’t think he is dead,” Trump said, contradicting earlier assumptions that Mojtaba Khamenei had been killed alongside his father, Ali Khamenei, on the first day of the joint US-Israeli bombardment that began on February 28.
The younger Khamenei was reported to have assumed the role of supreme leader after his father’s death, but the latest presidential remarks have injected fresh uncertainty into the leadership picture in Tehran.
Allies dispute Trump’s claim on Hormuz mines
Trump has previously declared on Truth Social that mines in the Strait of Hormuz had been removed or detonated. But US allies have pushed back on that assessment, according to media reports.
US officials and military sources say the strait has not been fully cleared. They argue that strong sea currents have likely shifted the position of some mines, making the demining effort significantly more complex.
Allied officials believe the operation will require an internationally coordinated response using advanced detection and disposal technologies, rather than a unilateral declaration of success.
Tanker hit by unknown projectile in Hormuz
A commercial oil tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, sparking a fire on board, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations.
“Local authorities reported that the tanker was hit by an unknown projectile, causing a fire on the vessel that was later extinguished,” UKMTO said in a statement on its website.
The agency confirmed that the crew were safe and that no environmental damage had been reported.
Indian tanker avoids strait after warning
An Indian-flagged tanker, the Haana, had planned to transit the Strait of Hormuz using the southern route known as the Omani corridor but abandoned the passage after receiving a warning, Iran’s Mehr news agency reported.
The agency did not specify who issued the warning. However, Hossein Mohebi, a spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has previously said that Tehran controls the Omani corridor as well.
Iran closed the strait to shipping after the United States attacked in July and declared that the ceasefire memorandum signed in June 2026 was no longer in effect. Tehran has said it will only reopen the waterway if Washington returns to the terms of that agreement. The US maintains that the strait is open.
Washington eyes 19th-century prize courts for Iranian tankers
The US Department of Justice is preparing to activate a long-dormant naval legal mechanism to streamline the military seizure of Iranian oil tankers.
The initiative is intended to tighten the economic blockade on Iran and offset the costs of the conflict. But legal experts cited by the agency warn that the move will face significant judicial hurdles, noting that prize courts represent “a historic area of law that has not been tested in modern conditions.”
Prize courts were specialist tribunals in international maritime law used to legalise the capture of enemy vessels and cargo during wartime. They were widely used in the 18th and 19th centuries, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars and the American Civil War, and allowed states to convert captured assets into property for sale. The last time the United States used such courts was during the Spanish-American War of 1898.
Officials are reportedly considering the federal district court for the Southern District of Texas as the primary venue, because the petrochemical complex at the port of Houston could provide storage for large volumes of seized crude.
Iran mocks US carrier’s port call with Green Mile quote
Iran’s foreign ministry has mocked the United States over the deployment of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, quoting a line from the film The Green Mile.
Esmaeil Baghaei, the ministry spokesman, posted on X after Thai naval officials confirmed that the carrier and two escort vessels would visit Thailand next week for crew rest following a 200-day deployment to the Middle East.
“America sent the USS Abraham Lincoln to the region as a show of force. After months of war and more than 200 days without a port call, it is now heading to Thailand for rest and recreation. Mission: ‘Project Strength’. Current mission: ‘Project Holiday’. ‘I’m tired, boss’,” Baghaei wrote.
US and Europe to discuss Hormuz security mission
American military commanders plan to meet European counterparts to discuss coordination of a so-called security mission in the Strait of Hormuz, according to Bloomberg, which cited sources familiar with the matter.
The meeting is expected to take place once a broader agreement is reached. Iran’s foreign ministry has previously said it is working with Oman to establish a temporary shipping corridor through the strait and to coordinate demining of the route.
Iran vows rewards for capturing US troops
Iran has drawn up a plan to incentivise resistance in the event of a US ground invasion, with women offered twice the reward of men for capturing or killing American soldiers, according to an Iranian army spokesman.
Mohammad Akraminia told Mehr that the plan provides for a bounty of five billion tomans for men and ten billion tomans for women — roughly $25,000 and $50,000 respectively — for anyone who “destroys or captures an American soldier.”
He said that in any new conflict, Iran would adopt offensive tactics and deploy more advanced weaponry, warning that the fighting could spread across the entire region.
US open to nuclear deal with Iran
Washington believes negotiations are the best route to preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and would consider supporting a civilian nuclear programme developed in cooperation with the United States, according to the US energy secretary.
Chris Wright said it was “quite possible” for Iran to develop a civilian nuclear programme with American involvement “for the benefit of all.”
The comments signal a potential diplomatic opening even as military tensions persist over the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s wider confrontation with the US.
