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Hormuz a ‘Territory of the United States’<\/p>\nPresident Donald Trump has shared an AI image to Truth Social showing him seizing an Iranian oil tanker, as tensions between Washington and Tehran remain high and following his statement that he would declare the Strait of Hormuz U.S. territory after the war ends.<\/p>\n
The image depicts the President on a boat, putting an American flag down as an Iranian flag lies on the floor, with two American soldiers behind him. The image has the text overlay: \u201cIt\u2019s Our Oil Tanker Now!\u201d<\/p>\n
The Strait of Hormuz\u2013a crucial maritime shipping lane that normally accounts for around 20 percent of global oil consumption\u2013has been effectively closed since the U.S. and Israel launched their war on Iran in February.<\/p>\n
Read More on News<\/p>\n
Hormuz a ‘Territory of the United States’<\/p>\n
While speaking at a police academy on Long Island, New York on Friday, Trump said \u201cAfter we finish defeating Iran, which is being very badly defeated, pretty soon I\u2019ll be declaring the Hormuz strait a territory of the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n
The remarks signified an escalation in the president\u2019s rhetoric about the strategically vital waterway.<\/a> The degree of seriousness of these remarks, and whether it signals a new policy direction, was not immediately clear.<\/p>\n The president’s remarks come as peace negotiations with Iran have repeatedly stalled, nearly six months into the conflict. Iranian officials have defied demands made by Trump and the U.S. has been blocking Iranian ports and shipping to put economic pressure on Tehran.<\/p>\n On Friday, Trump also addressed the toll on American soldiers who have spent almost nine months at sea on the USS Abraham Lincoln. There have been concerns over the mental health of the soldiers<\/a>, as well as over supply issues related to the aircraft.<\/p>\n Trump rejected claims that family members have raised concerns about the length of the ships deployment and said that the deployment, which so far has been at a record-setting uninterrupted 240 days at sea, is “not nearly long enough”.<\/p>\n He said that the \u201cship is moving right now, or very shortly, and it\u2019s being replaced with another very similar ship.\u201d Acting navy secretary Hung Cao said in a social media post on Friday that the Lincoln will \u201creturn home soon.\u201d<\/p>\n The war has led to surging gas prices, widespread criticism, and impacted the president’s favorability rating.<\/p>\n Speaking on Friday about the war, and how it has impacted oil prices, Trump said \u201cI\u2019ll never apologise. I did the right thing.\u201d The president acknowledged he has used the U.S. military “a little bit more than I wanted to” during his second term<\/p>\n Trump Shares AI Images on Truth Social Overnight<\/p>\n Trump has continually sparked controversy with AI-generated content of himself, including an instance in April when he posted an AI<\/a>\u2011generated image depicting himself as a Jesus\u2011like figure<\/a> which drew widespread criticism before he later removed the post.<\/p>\n He later said the image was meant to depict him as a doctor.<\/p>\n Overnight, in addition to the oil tanker image, he shared an AI-generated \u201cTrump 2028\u201d campaign poster.<\/p>\n Since the beginning of his second term in office, Trump and people in his circle have suggested that he may run for a third term in 2028. Trump though has repeatedly change tact on the idea, saying at times that he wasn\u2019t joking about running, and later saying it was not something he would do.<\/p>\n The U.S. Constitution rules out anyone running for a third term, and there is no precedent for a three-term president.<\/p>\n Trump also shared an AI image of himself and the comedian Rosie O\u2019Donnell, that depicts him as a doctor treating her, the patient, for \u201cTrump Derangement Syndrome.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Tankers](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26167495359337-616ad3.jpg\"\/)
USS Abraham Lincoln Concerns Dismissed<\/p>\n![\"In](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1786814361_856_GettyImages-2265016949.jpg\"\/)
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