- By Shubham Bajpai
- Mon, 04 May 2026 11:45 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
United States President Donald Trump on Monday said that the American military shot down seven Iranian boats after Iran claimed to have attacked ships. Trump said that Iran attacked several ships, operating under Operation Freedom, including one belonging to South Korea. He also called upon South Korea to join forces in West Asia against Tehran.
In a Truth Social post, the US President said, "ran has taken some shots at unrelated Nations with respect to the Ship Movement, PROJECT FREEDOM, including a South Korean Cargo Ship. Perhaps it’s time for South Korea to come and join the mission! We’ve shot down seven small Boats or, as they like to call them, fast Boats. It’s all they have left. Other than the South Korean Ship, there has been, at this moment, no damage going through the Strait."
"Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Caine, will have a News Conference tomorrow morning," he added.
Earlier, Tehran fired three missiles in the United Arab Emirates' Fujairah, which caused injuries to at least three Indian nationals. The UAE's defence ministry added that the fourth missile fell into the sea.
Trump's 'Project Freedom' To Open Hormuz Backfires
The fresh escalation came after Trump announced Project Freedom, an attempt to use the US Navy to free up shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
The gamble, in the initial hours on Monday, appeared to have backfired; it caused no surge in merchant shipping to be witnessed through the strait but provoked Iran to resort to military response.
After the UAE came under attack, it said its air defences were engaging missile and drone threats as firefighters were engaged at a major oil industry zone following a drone attack.
According to a report by Reuters, citing flight tracking service Flightradar24, multiple flights bound for the UAE were diverted to Muscat in Oman, while other inbound aircraft circled over Saudi Arabia.
In a statement, the Fujairah Media Office said that civil defence teams were deployed immediately to contain the blaze at the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone. The statement added that three Indian citizens were moderately injured in the attack and taken to the hospital.
(With Reuters Inputs)