President Donald Trump has been discussing a broader escalation of U.S. military action against Iran, according to a Wall Street Journal report that said the White House has been reviewing options ranging from seizure of Kharg Island to strikes on nuclear-linked sites and a wider air campaign.
The report said Trump has still publicly said he wants a diplomatic solution. At the same time, it said Iran has not turned over its stockpile of nuclear materials, leaving negotiations stuck and raising the risk that a conflict that has dragged on for nearly five months could enter its most dangerous stage yet.
U.S. attacks on Iran entered their fifth day this week, with the two sides locked in a struggle over control of the Strait of Hormuz, the report said. On July 15, the Journal cited U.S. officials as saying Trump’s posture had become noticeably more hawkish and that he was no longer limiting the discussion to diplomacy while keeping escalation plans in reserve.
The Journal said a decision to approve the options now under review could push the war to its riskiest point since it began and draw the United States deeper into a widening Middle East conflict. The report also pointed to possible knock-on effects in global markets, saying a broader regional war could lift oil prices and inflation expectations while putting pressure on risk assets and increasing demand for safe havens.
Why Kharg Island and the Strait of Hormuz are central
According to the report, Trump’s focus has turned to Kharg Island and the Strait of Hormuz. Kharg Island was described as Iran’s main crude export hub, with nearly all of the country’s oil shipped from there. The Strait of Hormuz, meanwhile, carries about one-fifth of global oil transport.
In the Journal’s framing, control over those two locations would give Washington leverage over both Tehran’s revenue base and one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints. The report said that helps explain why the U.S. military moved first to disable tankers heading toward Kharg Island, targeting not only military capacity but also Iran’s economic staying power.
Options reviewed in the Situation Room
The Journal said Trump personally oversaw discussions late on July 14 in the Situation Room alongside Vice President JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Joint Chiefs Chairman Caine.
The options on the table, according to the report, included sending ground troops to seize Kharg Island and positions along the Strait of Hormuz, bombing a tunnel complex at Koh-e, and expanding the radius of airstrikes to cover energy facilities inside Iran.
One of the most sensitive targets mentioned in the report was Koh-e, which it described as tied to Iran’s nuclear program and not previously struck by the U.S. military. A strike there would amount to a direct hit on the core of Iran’s secret nuclear activity, according to the Journal’s account.
Pressure campaign, but no final order yet
The report said that after weeks of U.S. strikes, the two sides at one point reached a preliminary peace agreement. Iran, however, held onto its stockpile of nuclear materials and did not accept Trump’s terms, leaving talks deadlocked.
That impasse led Trump to ask advisers for fresh escalation scenarios, the Journal said, with the aim of forcing Iran to back down or at least securing a promise that it would stop attacking commercial shipping in the strait.
Still, the report cautioned against taking every Trump threat at face value. It said he has repeatedly issued sweeping warnings and later stepped back, including past threats involving island seizures and control of Iran’s oil industry. Multiple U.S. officials also told the Journal that Trump is reluctant to send ground forces into combat.
From that perspective, the public display of military options may itself be part of the negotiating strategy, meant to pressure Iran into returning to the table.
Trump has not yet made a final decision on the next step, the report said. Even so, each option now under review could alter the course of the war.