Washington DC, April 23 -- US President Donald Trump on Thursday said that he has directed the country's Navy to take decisive action against any vessels attempting to lay mines in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz amid escalating tension over the virtual control of the waterway between Tehran and Washington.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said there will be "no hesitation" from the US side to shoot down such boats.

He further, in a veiled reference to Iran, claimed that all 159 of "their naval ships" are at the bottom of the sea.

"I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be (Their naval ships are ALL, 159 of them, at the bottom of the sea!), that is putting mines in the wat...