'They are lying': Speculation swirls as Trump admin repeatedly denies attacks by Iran

The Trump administration refuted a claim Monday that a U.S. warship transiting the Strait of Hormuz was forced to retreat after being struck by Iranian-launched missiles, a denial that several critics called into serious question.

“I suspect that a US Navy ship was, indeed, hit and the Pentagon is playing wordsmith because they are attempting to avoid escalation,” argued geopolitical analyst Brandon Weichert. “We have exhausted all military options.”

According to Iran’s Fars News Agency, a U.S. warship was “forced to retreat and flee” after being struck by two missiles, with Iran’s military claiming victory for having denied “the entry [into the strait] of American and Zionist enemy destroyers.”

In a social media post on X, U.S. Central Command fiercely denied the report, though several critics weren’t buying the Trump administration’s claim.

“Watch closely,” wrote Matthew Duss, a scholar and foreign policy expert, in a social media post on X. “The Trump administration's consistent pattern has been immediate, unequivocal denial, then slowly dribbling out confirmation that yeah, that happened, it was bad, actually very bad, and hope coverage has already moved on and no one notices.”

Furthermore, U.S. Central Command also claimed Monday that two “U.S.-flagged merchant vessels” had successfully transited the strait with the assistance of the U.S. Navy. That, too, was immediately called into question by critics.

“It is safe to assume they are lying,” wrote foreign policy commentator Daniel McAdams, the executive director of the Ron Paul Institute, in a social media post on X in response to U.S. Central Command’s claim regarding the U.S.-flagged merchant vessels. “Zero credibility. Sad.”

The Trump administration has issued numerous statements since the beginning of the U.S. war against Iran that were later proven false or misleading. For instance, shortly after the bombing of an Iranian girls’ elementary school that killed 156 civilians, including 120 children, President Donald Trump claimed that in his opinion, “based on what [he’d] seen, that was done by Iran,” despite a preliminary inquiry finding the United States to be at fault for the attack.