Tanker attacked and U.S. drone shot down, yet Trump says Strait of Hormuz is safe

A tanker leaving the Strait of Hormuz was hit by three unidentified projectiles near Oman, while Iran claimed it had shot down a U.S. drone. Donald Trump nevertheless said the strategic waterway was safe.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations organization said the tanker was struck late on August 31 about 30 kilometers east of Khasab, Oman. No casualties or oil spill were reported, and the organization did not identify who was behind the attack.

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much more forcefully

Earlier that day, Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed it had brought down a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone over the eastern Strait of Hormuz. In a statement carried by Iranian state broadcaster Press TV, the guard said it used a newly developed advanced air-defense system. The MQ-9 is a medium-to-large drone used for both attack and reconnaissance.

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We are managing the Strait of Hormuz in very good shape.

The United Arab Emirates' Defense Ministry separately said it intercepted an Iranian drone that entered the airspace over its territorial waters early on September 1.

The incidents followed a U.S. airstrike on Iran's Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz on August 30, described as the first direct U.S. attack on Iran in more than a month. Iran's military then fired missiles at a U.S. base in Jordan and said on August 31 that it would retaliate "much more forcefully." Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House, said, "We are managing the Strait of Hormuz in very good shape." He added that about 30 ships passed through each night and that large volumes of oil were leaving the strait. In a Fox News interview, he called Iran a "failed country" but said that did not mean the United States would stop striking it.

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failed country