US says it destroyed 16 mine-laying vessels as Iran threatens to block Gulf oil exports
Washington: Amid intensified war in the Middle East, the US military on Wednesday said it took out multiple Iranian vessels on Tuesday as the Islamic Republic vowed to block the region's oil exports and concerns grew about the country's threats to stop tankers from using a waterway through which 20 per cent of the world's oil is shipped. The US military further added that it destroyed 16 mine-laying Iranian vessels, though President Donald Trump said in social media posts that there were no reports of Iran planting explosives in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump earlier warned Iran against laying mines…