Iran building up defenses of Kharg Island to protect against potential US ground attack, sources say

Source: CNN

Politics

5 min read

Iran building up defenses of Kharg Island to protect against potential US ground attack, sources say

By Natasha Bertrand, Zachary Cohen, Kylie Atwood, Tal Shalev
Updated 4 hr ago


Satellite image shows Iran's Kharg Island on March 11th, 2026, prior to US strikes on the island. (Airbus)

Iran has been laying traps and moving additional military personnel and air defenses to Kharg Island in recent weeks in preparation for a possible US operation to take control of the island, according to multiple people familiar with US intelligence reporting on the issue.

The Trump administration has been weighing using US troops to seize the tiny island in the northeastern Persian Gulf — an economic lifeline for Iran that handles roughly 90% of the country’s crude exports — as leverage over the Iranians to coerce them to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, CNN has reported.

But US officials and military experts say there would be significant risks involved in such a ground operation, including a large number of US casualties. The island has layered defenses, and the Iranians have moved additional shoulder-fired, surface-to-air guided missile systems known as MANPADs there in recent weeks, the sources said.

Iran has also been laying traps including anti-personnel and anti-armor mines around the island, the sources said, including on the shoreline where US troops could possibly stage an amphibious landing if President Donald Trump moved forward with a ground operation.

{snip}

CNN’s Haley Britzky contributed to this report

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/25/politics/iran-kharg-island-us-military-ground-troops