Trump Orders Navy to 'Shoot Down, Destroy' Iranian Ships in International Waters if they Harass American Forces

President Donald Trump has ordered the U.S. Navy to fire on and destroy any Iranian ships which harass American operations at sea. The orders were announced by the president on Twitter, and follow a period of high tensions between the two countries which escalated considerably with the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani on January 3rd. This comes after repeated reports of harassment by Iranian speedboats of U.S. surface warships and even carrier strike groups operating in the Persian Gulf region near Iranian waters. A U.S. Naval Forces Central Command statement read regarding such harassment:

"The IRGC (Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps) Navy vessels repeatedly crossed the bows and sterns of the US vessels at extremely close range and high speeds.”

Alongside a sizeable fleet of North Korean designed submarines, speedboats armed with a range of anti ship weapons form the bulk of Iran’s naval capabilities and can potentially pose a threat to carrier groups when fielded in large numbers. Iran is though to have several hundred of these ships, and is reportedly developing unmanned variants which will be more expendable in combat. A spokesperson for the Iranian Armed Forces has responded to President Trump’s order with the following statement:

"Today, instead of bullying others, the Americans should put all their efforts toward saving those members of their forces who are infected with coronavirus.”

The U.S. Navy for its part has invested heavily in developing a number of weapons systems specifically to neutralise speedboats and other 'swarm' attackers, including laser weapons which have yet to be deployed.