How a U.S. Assault on Kharg Island Could Unfold

The American troops approach Kharg Island, flying low on tilt-rotor aircraft and helicopters. Upon landing, they fan out over the vital oil export hub, all under Iranian fire.

The troops stick close to the island’s oil infrastructure for cover, confronting the Iranian regime with an extraordinary dilemma: destroy the oil facilities to get at them? Or hold back, allowing Washington to take control of the country’s economic backbone?

Such a scenario could play out in the coming weeks as the US weighs whether to take Kharg Island, where 90 per cent of the Islamic republic’s oil is loaded on to tankers.