In a startling revelation from Fox News, former US President Donald Trump has issued a direct and aggressive threat to bomb Oman if the Gulf nation disrupts Washington’s ongoing diplomatic efforts to strike a new agreement with Iran over control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz. The inflammatory comment came during an exchange with Fox News correspondent Trey Yingst, who posed a question to Trump about the parallel bilateral negotiations between Iran and Oman focused on strait governance. Yingst confirmed that Trump’s blunt response was unreserved: “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them.”
This threat lands against a backdrop of advancing diplomatic progress between Tehran and Muscat, which have already reached a preliminary understanding on a new framework for managing maritime transit through the strait. The two neighboring states are currently working through final technical and procedural details to release an official joint statement outlining the agreement, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei confirmed amid continued negotiations on Monday. Baghaei noted that the talks have been slowed by persistent security instability stemming from recent US and Israeli military operations across the region, describing the process of drafting the maritime transit route framework as uniquely time-consuming due to overlapping security complexities inherent to the strategically critical waterway. “The issue is inherently complex,” he added.
The proposed bilateral mechanism, according to Baghaei, is designed to achieve two core, mutually reinforcing goals: protecting the full sovereign rights and national interests of both Iran and Oman, while also guaranteeing unimpeded safe passage for commercial shipping vessels moving through the strait. He emphasized that this framework marks a historic first for the region, creating a structured system that simultaneously upholds the sovereignty of the two littoral states and addresses the global need for secure commercial transit through the key chokepoint. Intensive negotiations to finalize the joint statement are still ongoing, he confirmed.
The Strait of Hormuz, which carries roughly 20% of the world’s daily supply of oil and liquefied natural gas, saw a sharp, unexpected drop in shipping traffic over the most recent weekend. Data compiled by leading shipping analytics firm Kpler shows that only five commodity-carrying vessels transited the strait on Saturday, with zero recorded transits on Sunday — a dramatic decline from the 31 vessels that passed through the same route the previous weekend.
In additional comments made on Monday, Trump doubled down on his hardline stance toward Iran, urging the country to what he described as a “white flag of surrender.” He dismissed Iran’s negotiating position, claiming “They’re good poker players, but they’re dying.” The former president also made an unprecedented admission, confirming that Washington maintains active backchannel communication directly with officials from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a group that the US has formally designated as a foreign terrorist organization. “We have a backchannel with the IRGC. We are speaking directly with the IRGC officials in Iran,” Trump stated.
Turning to the ongoing conflict in Gaza, Trump made unexpected claims about ceasefire and disarmament efforts, saying “Israelis should not be striking in Gaza. Hamas agreed to lay down their weapons.” He further confirmed that the US maintains a separate, dedicated channel of communication with Hamas leadership, asserting “We have a different channel with Hamas, and ultimately they are giving up their guns.”
Trump’s reported approach to Gaza centers on a revised peace plan that would see Hamas complete full disarmament in exchange for a complete withdrawal of Israeli military forces from the Gaza Strip. Even as Washington pushes forward with this proposal, Israeli officials have publicly rejected the framework, creating a diplomatic deadlock that persists as of Monday.