Fox News: 10 vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday

In a television interview, a Fox News host, citing shipping-tracker data, asked Donald Trump about the status of the Strait of Hormuz and his claim that the “strait is open.” The question came after only 10 vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, a figure the host said was less than 10 percent of the waterway’s usual traffic. In response, Trump emphasized that the strait is open for people to pass through and also made remarks on several other issues.

• The Fox News host said shipping data trackers show that only 10 vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday.
• That number is less than 10 percent of the usual traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway.
• The Fox News host asked Trump: “When you say the strait is open, what do you mean?”
• Trump replied: “If people want to go through it, it’s open. We’re not opening it for Iran… right now it’s open.”
• According to Khabar Fori and Akhbare Fori, Trump claimed that his representatives spoke with the Iranians an hour earlier.
• Khabar Fori and Akhbare Fori reported that the Fox News host asked Trump: “Do you still intend to seize Khark Island?”
• Trump responded: “I can’t tell you that, because if I do, that would be a foolish thing to do.”
• Akhbare Fori also reported that the Fox News host asked Trump: “Are you ruling out a limited ground operation?”
• Trump replied: “No. Sometimes a ground operation is needed.”. Coverage difference: Most media outlets (Jamaran, Entekhab, Khabar Fori, Akharin Khabar, and IRIB News) focused on Trump’s exchange with the Fox News host about the status of the Strait of Hormuz and the number of vessels passing through it. By contrast, Khabar Fori and Akhbare Fori, in addition to this topic, also covered Trump’s claim about speaking with the Iranians and the Fox News host’s questions about Khark Island and a ground operation. Akhbare Fori used the insulting terms “pigs” and “yellow devil” in its quotation of Trump.