Trump again has a key Iranian oil hub in his sights. Here’s what we know about Kharg Island
By Billy Stockwell, CNN
(CNN) — US President Donald Trump said Thursday the United States will take Iran’s Kharg Island and other oil infrastructure in the country, amid a deadlock in peace talks between the two nations.
The island, a coral outcrop off Iran’s coast, is an economic lifeline for Tehran that typically handles roughly 90% of the country’s crude oil exports.
“At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets, much like we have with Venezuela,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
Trump has previously floated the idea of taking the key Iranian oil hub – and the US has struck the island multiple times – but the US president’s latest comments mark a significant escalation as regional mediators push for dialogue over renewed fighting.
Here’s what we know about the island:
What is Kharg Island?
Kharg Island is a five-mile stretch of land off the Iranian coast around a third of the size of Manhattan, described by US officials as the “nexus for all the Iranian oil supply.”
Its long jetties jutt into waters that are deep enough to accommodate oil supertankers, making the island a critical site for oil distribution.
The island has long been key to Iran’s economy. A declassified CIA document from 1984 published online said the facilities are “the most vital in Iran’s oil system, and their continued operation is essential to Iran’s economic well-being.”
Alternative export routes that bypass the Strait of Hormuz exist, but they are limited and have not been robustly tested on a large scale, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
For example, in 2021, Iran inaugurated the Jask oil terminal, allowing crude oil to be transported to Jask on the Gulf of Oman just east of the strait, but the terminal is not considered a viable export option for Iranian crude, the IEA said.
Storage capacity on Kharg is estimated at roughly 30 million barrels, Reuters reported in March citing trade intelligence firm Kpler.
Earlier this year, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid said destroying the terminal would “cripple Iran’s economy and topple the regime.”
Has Iran been preparing for a potential US attack?
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in March that “Iran’s enemies, with the support of one of the regional countries” were preparing to occupy one of the country’s islands, without directly naming the island. That did not happen at the time.
In preparation for a possible US operation to take control of Kharg Island, Iran laid traps and moved additional military personnel and air defenses there earlier this year, according to multiple people familiar with US intelligence reporting on the issue.
The island already has layered defenses, and the Iranians moved additional shoulder-fired, surface-to-air guided missile systems known as MANPADs there, the sources said.
Has the US attacked the island before?
Yes, several times.
Trump said in March the US had bombed “every military target” on the island while threatening to attack its oil infrastructure if Iran continued blocking ships from traversing the Strait of Hormuz.
Video posted to Truth Social and geolocated by CNN showed US strikes on the island’s airport facilities, with large explosions and black smoke visible throughout the footage.
Trump said on the same day that Kharg was “not high on the list, but it’s one of so many different things, and I can change my mind in seconds.”
But as far back as 1988, decades before he was elected, Trump has talked about invading the island.
“One bullet shot at one of our men or ships and I’d do a number on Kharg Island. I’d go in and take it,” he told The Guardian in an interview at the time.
In early April, the US said it had struck military targets on the island, although the strikes did not target oil facilities, according to one US official. Iran’s semi-official Mehr News Agency said maritime infrastructure on the outcrop suffered little damage during the US bombing.
White House officials believe taking Kharg Island would “totally bankrupt” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, one official said, and could potentially lead to a swift end of the war.
But many inside the administration are wary of such a move, particularly given it would require a significant number of ground troops to achieve.
Plans for the US military to try and capture the island have been drawn up for months but continuously shelved because the operation was considered too risky, a senior Pentagon official and two administration officials told CNN.
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CNN’s Jim Sciutto, Aileen Graef, Kit Maher, Kevin Liptak, Sarah Ferris, Helen Regan, Laura Sharman, Natasha Bertrand, Zachary Cohen, Kylie Atwood, Tal Shalev, Isaac Yee and Max Saltman contributed reporting.
