Donald Trump Demands Iran Pay Compensation for Killed and Gravely Wounded

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that he will demand Iran pay compensation for “all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded,” linking the demand to Iran’s request for damages after U.S. and Israeli strikes this year.

“U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he will demand that Iran pay compensation”

Reuters

In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote, “I have instructed my representatives to put this firmly into any, and all, future negotiations,” making compensation part of the next round of talks.

Anadolu Ajansı

Trump also referenced the October 2000 bombing of the USS Cole, saying he would seek compensation for those killed there, and Reuters reported the FBI attributed the USS Cole bombing to al Qaeda.

The dispute is playing out as Iran said over the weekend it was nearing a deal with Oman defining new shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz, while repeating that the U.S. must meet conditions including compensation and an end to sanctions and military threats before the waterway is reopened.

Trump’s compensation demand came as negotiations around the Strait of Hormuz remained unsettled, with TRT World describing the U.S. and Tehran as divided over “both the conflict and the terms of any agreement.”

In the same period, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office at the White House that “The only party currently in control of the Strait of Hormuz is the United States Navy,” and said, “We have removed the mines from the entire strait.”

ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English

The Hill reported that Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said over the weekend that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the U.S. “corrects its behavior,” and that the council’s secretary, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, said the U.S. must permanently end the war, lift the naval blockade, and withdraw its military.

Reuters also tied the compensation demand to Iran’s push for damages, noting Trump’s post followed Iran’s statement that it was nearing a deal with Oman on new shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump’s remarks expanded the scope of compensation beyond Iran’s war-related damages, with Reuters saying he added that Tehran should also pay compensation to the families of the thousands of people during anti-government protests in January.

“Trump added that Tehran should also pay compensation to the families of the thousands of people”

Reuters

The Hill reported Trump said compensation should cover “the 52,000 that have been killed in the last five months,” and also referenced compensation for protesters killed in Iran “over the last 50 years.”

In Diario Las Américas, Trump said he instructed his representatives to include compensation in “every single future negotiation,” and he added that Iran should be held responsible for “the damages and deaths” in Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Gaza.

As the standoff continues, the Strait of Hormuz remained a central pressure point, with ASHARQ AL-AWSAT saying the strait had been effectively blocked since the U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28, and that oil prices and gas prices rose after Iranian statements about conditions for reopening.