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Iran’s Ebrahim Azizi mocked Donald Trump over his reported secret transfer via a catering truck in Turkey amid an alleged Iranian threat.
Iran’s Ebrahim Azizi Mocks Trump Over Reported ‘Food Truck’ Transfer (Photo: Reuters)
Iran has mocked US President Donald Trump over reports that he was secretly moved from Air Force One to a smaller military aircraft using an airport catering truck while leaving Turkey, with a senior Iranian lawmaker telling the US President to worry about his own security instead of making “endless bluffing” claims about the Strait of Hormuz.
Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security Commission, took a direct swipe at Trump in a post on X after details emerged of the extraordinary security operation during the US President’s departure from Ankara last month.
“The U.S. President ought to worry about his own security rather than his endless bluffing regarding the Strait of Hormuz; before he ends up hiding in a food truck,” Azizi said.
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The remark comes as Tehran and Washington continue to trade sharp statements over the strategic waterway, with Trump recently claiming that the Strait of Hormuz could soon become US territory after Washington defeats Iran.
Iran Hits Back At Trump Over Hormuz
Trump made the claim at a political rally in New York state on Friday, saying that “pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States.”
“It’s true,” Trump added.
An unnamed White House official later clarified that Trump was joking, according to the Wall Street Journal, as cited by AFP.
Iran, however, responded firmly to the US President’s remarks. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on X that the waterway remains under Iranian authority.
“The Strait of Hormuz has been Iranian, is Iranian, and will remain Iranian,” Gharibabadi said.
“This strait will only be closed and opened under Iran’s command.”
Trump has repeatedly insisted that the Strait of Hormuz is under US control despite traffic through the crucial waterway remaining throttled after Tehran effectively closed it at the start of the Middle East war in late February.
Last week, senior Iranian official Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr laid out conditions for reopening the strait, including an end to what he called the “war and aggression against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, and Iraq”.
He also demanded an end to sanctions, the release of frozen Iranian assets and compensation for wartime damage.
Trump Secretly Switched Planes In Turkey
Azizi’s “food truck” remark was a reference to a reported covert operation during Trump’s departure from a NATO summit in Ankara.
According to a report by The Washington Post cited by The Associated Press, Trump secretly flew out of Turkey aboard a smaller US military aircraft while journalists and some White House staff were led to believe that he remained aboard Air Force One.
Trump had arrived at the summit aboard a new red, white and navy-blue aircraft gifted by Qatar and retrofitted for presidential use.
Before leaving Turkey, he had said he would travel part of the way home aboard an older, baby-blue Air Force One.
In Ankara, Trump boarded the older Air Force One in view of television cameras. But according to the Post report, he was secretly transferred minutes later to an Air Force C-32A through an airport catering truck normally used to load meals and supplies.
The truck was elevated alongside the aircraft and positioned at a door away from the main entrance, allowing Trump and a small group of aides to leave without being seen by those outside the operation.
The larger Air Force One then flew to Royal Air Force Mildenhall in the UK while Trump travelled aboard the smaller aircraft.
Iran Threat Linked To Secret Operation
Reuters separately reported that a person briefed on the matter said a threat that Air Force One could be targeted by a shoulder-fired missile prompted the Secret Service to secretly move Trump to the smaller government jet.
The threat reportedly emerged on the final day of Trump’s Ankara visit and was considered credible and imminent.
The New York Times also reported that US officials were alarmed after learning that Iranians knew where Trump was staying in Ankara, including the exact floor of his hotel.
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White House communications director Steven Cheung said there were “many enemies of America” who had their sights on Trump and that the administration used “every tool at our disposal” to address those threats.
Trump himself acknowledged the security threat when reporters asked him whether there was a credible Iranian threat against Air Force One.
“Well, I have a threat all the time. I’m number one on their list before you,” Trump said.
He then told the travelling reporters: “But if I go, you go.”
Iranian Media Turns Plane Switch Into Mockery
Iranian state media has also seized on the reported aircraft switch, presenting it as evidence of Trump’s concerns over Iran’s military power.
“Again, Trump, with his new scandal, has become the top subject in the U.S. media these days. A scandal stemming from fear of Iran’s military power, a power that caused Trump, last month, while returning from Turkey, to secretly switch his plane,” a presenter on Iranian state television said.
The presenter described the episode as a source of “humiliation” for Trump.
Iran’s embassy in South Africa also joined the mockery, posting on X that Trump “will be hidden in a trash can before long”, alongside a meme showing Trump inside a catering box filled with food.
The episode has therefore become a political talking point in Tehran, with Azizi linking the reported food-truck transfer directly to Trump’s rhetoric on the Strait of Hormuz.
After arriving at Mildenhall, Trump was photographed getting off the presidential aircraft, creating the impression that he had travelled aboard Air Force One.
He later boarded the new Qatar-provided aircraft for the remainder of his journey to Washington.
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Key Questions Answered
Ask News18The Strait of Hormuz is likely to remain a point of contention as the dispute over its control is a central issue in the ongoing conflict between the US and Iran. Both countries continue to make competing claims over the waterway, and negotiations on its future remain unresolved.
Ask News18About the Author
Vani Mehrotra is the Deputy News Editor at News18.com. She has more than 10 years of experience in national and international news and has previously worked on multiple desks.
August 16, 2026, 08:30 IST
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