Trump's AI Videos Claim Kharg Bombing; Actual Strikes Hit Larak
US President Donald Trump has shared two AI-generated videos on his social media platform Truth Social, alleging they show American military strikes on Iran's Kharg Island. The footage, created using artificial intelligence, displays massive explosions at an oil storage tank and an oil tanker, with an aircraft hovering above. "Kharg Island being blown to smithereens!!! President DJT," read one post.
The videos came hours after the US military conducted air strikes on Iranian rocket launchers on Larak, a small island in the Strait of Hormuz. These were the first US attacks on Iran since late July. Washington said the strikes were aimed at preventing Iran from launching more sea mines into the strait, days after the US announced completing clearance of explosives from the waterway. "US forces took limited, precise action against IRGC minelaying forces posing an imminent threat in the Strait of Hormuz," the US Central Command stated on X.
As of now, there has been no report of any US strike on Kharg Island. Experts suggest Trump's AI-generated posts may be a tactic of intimidation. The US leader is known for sharing such content on social media, which is often a significant exaggeration or unrelated to reality.
Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guards claimed they retaliated by attacking two US military air bases in Washington-allied Jordan with ballistic missiles, causing "heavy damage," according to state media. Jordan's army reported intercepting eight missiles but did not specify their origin. Tehran later said it also targeted US military personnel at Al Minhad Air Base in the United Arab Emirates.
Kharg Island is strategically vital for Iran, handling about 90 per cent of its oil exports before the conflict began on February 28. A US naval blockade has reportedly sharply curtailed Iran's oil exports. American officials told Axios that very few tankers have been spotted at Kharg Island recently, though oil from other nations transits through an alternative route along Oman.
The island lies 26 kilometers from Iran's coast in the northern end of the Gulf, about 483 kilometers northwest of the Strait of Hormuz. Its deep waters allow tankers too large for Iran's shallow coastal waters to dock. Any attack on the island would disrupt Iran's energy trade and place enormous pressure on Tehran's economy. Iran is the third-largest producer in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.
