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President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States would not only continue to attack Iran, but would soon seize control of its oil industry, likening it to this year’s earlier military operation in Venezuela.
“The United States will be hitting Iran (Whose Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of Defense, together with most of its offensive capability, are GONE!), VERY HARD TONIGHT,” he said in a statement posted to Truth Social.
As reported by RSBN, the U.S. began striking Iran on Wednesday evening, conducting attacks against multiple Iranian military sites near reported locations such as Qeshm, Kargan, and Sirik.
The escalating situation was sparked following an alleged Iranian attack against a U.S. Army Apache helicopter this week – an incident that President Donald Trump promised to avenge.
In his statement on Thursday, the president was very plain about the U.S. military’s goals when it came to Iran: take the oil.
“At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets, much like we have with Venezuela, which is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the United States of America,” President Trump wrote.
Kharg Island is a seaport in the Persian Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz. It acts as a key terminal for much of Iran’s oil export business.
The president’s comments about Venezuela refer to the January 2026 military mission, Operation Absolute Resolve, in which U.S. forces arrested Nicolas Maduro and seized control of the Venezuelan oil reserves – the largest confirmed reserves in the world.
“My preference has always been, take Kharg Island,” President Trump told Fox News in a new interview. “…I don’t know that America has the stomach for it, to be honest with it – you’d make a fortune…I think they’d like to see us come home. But, we did it with Venezuela. Venezuela’s worked out great for everybody. We’ve taken millions and millions of barrels of oil out of Venezuela.”