Trump was sending message to Iran with Kharg Island post, says Vance

U.S. ​President Donald Trump was sending ‌a ​message to Iran with his social media post about Iran's energy hub of ‌Kharg Island being blown to smithereens, Vice President JD Vance said on Monday.

"The president likes to switch it up on social ‌media a little bit. He would be the first to ‌say he doesn't make announcements about military actions on social media, but I think that he's sending a message to the Iranians," Vance said when asked ⁠about ​Trump's post. Trump's ⁠one-line social media post on Sunday was accompanied by an AI-generated video clip. ⁠A U.S. official said on Monday the military had not targeted ​Kharg Island in overnight strikes. An Iranian official dismissed Trump's ⁠post as "laughable".

Attacking Kharg, which handled 90% of Iran's oil exports before the war ⁠launched ​by U.S. and Israeli attacks on February 28, would severely disrupt its energy trade and put huge pressure on ⁠its economy. In describing the first known U.S. military strikes since late ⁠July, a ⁠U.S. official said forces attacked two Iranian launchers on Larak Island.