Iran-US war latest: Tehran hits back at Trump over Kharg Island video as tensions flare in Middle East

The first military action in the Middle East in more than a month has sent oil prices surging by more than 3 per cent

Brent crude oil rose above $90 after the US’s attack on Sunday broke a lull in fighting in the six-month long war.

Meanwhile, the futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average both declined 0.2 per cent on Monday and Nasdaq futures slipped 0.1 per cent.

Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said: “The Middle East had finally gone quiet enough for oil traders to start sanding some of the war premium out of crude.

“Then Sunday arrived, with a reminder that quiet in the Strait of Hormuz is not the same as peace.”

White House correspondent Andrew Feinberg reports:

The video, posted to the president’s Truth Social account, appears to show oil storage tanks and refineries erupting in flames from the perspective of someone filming from inside a helicopter above the carnage, with an accompanying message describing the scene as “Kharg Island being blown to smithereens” and signed as “President DJT.”

But a U.S. official said no such attack had taken place, with Kharg Island not being among the locations targeted overnight in what has been the first exchange of fire between American and Iranian forces in weeks.

Additionally, the head of National Iranian Oil Co, Hamid Bovard, said on Monday that the president’s post was “laughable” and described conditions on Kharg Island as “calm and appropriate.”

Trump — whose White House has repeatedly stated that his Truth Social posts count as official statements from the commander in chief — also hit out at Iran again in a separate Truth Social post on Monday, writing that it was “officially a Failed Nation” and “DEAD.”

Tehran will deliver a “response dozens of times greater” to every US attack, a senior Iranian source has said.

The source, who has direct ‌knowledge of Iranian decision-making ‌and declined to be named, told Reuters that hostilities that flared overnight remain a “limited and contained confrontation”.

They said Tehran was ready to deliver a harsh response if attacked again.

Conditions in the Strait of Hormuz “will become worse for vessels that violate” rules set by ‌Tehran for passage ​through the ‌waterway, they warned, adding that ⁠no target in ⁠the region was ‌beyond ​Tehran’s reach.

The US military has said that Iran’s claims that a supertanker struck two mines in the Strait of Hormuz is false.

“This is yet another IRGC attempt to intimidate regional commercial shipping through disinformation,” Centcom said.

Iranian media reported earlier that a supertanker caught fire and came to a complete ‌halt after striking ​two ‌naval mines ⁠in the shipping route.

The ​European Union Aviation Safety Agency has extended its warning to airlines to avoid airspace over the waters ⁠of the Persian Gulf within Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE until the end of September.

It narrowed an earlier advisory that recommended avoiding the countries’ entire airspace.

The new advisory comes hours after the US. and Iran resumed hostilities for the first time since late July.

It said: “While risks over the waters of ⁠the Persian Gulf remain high, operations necessary for ​arrivals ⁠at or departures from aerodromes ‌within the affected Flight Information Regions may be conducted with sufficient mitigation.”

It asked operators to exercise caution while operating above the land territory of these nations, adding that airlines should also not operate over Gulf of Oman waters within Oman’s Muscat flight information region.

The agency lifted its previous recommendation that airlines avoid Jordanian airspace, but advised airlines to exercise caution until 30 September.

It also extended its recommendations that airlines not operate in the airspace of Iran, Iraq and Lebanon until the end of September.

A US defence official has told Reuters that overnight American strikes exclusively targeted IRGC positions on Larak Island did not hit Kharg Island, Iran’s primary oil export hub.

The clarification follows a post by President Donald Trump claiming Kharg Island was being “blown to smithereens,” accompanied by a video clip that AI detection software and media analysis confirmed was synthetically generated.

Iranian energy officials dismissed claims of an attack on Kharg as “laughable,” confirming that operations at the terminal remain intact.

US Central Command has reiterated that its overnight action was a “limited, precise” strike targeting IRGC forces preparing to deploy sea mines into Strait of Hormuz shipping lanes from Larak Island, located over 600 kilometers east of Kharg.

Global oil prices have risen again after the US and Iran renewed strikes on Monday for the first time in more than a month.

Brent crude oil, the international standard, climbed above $91 per barrel, while US oil was trading at $86.26, up 3.44 per cent.

Since the beginning of the war, Brent crude oil is about about 25 per cent, presenting a growing problem for Donald Trump ahead of the midterm elections.