An official Iranian social media account called California a “new territory” of Iran, in response to the posting of an image by US President Donald Trump that portrayed the Strait of Hormuz as a “new US territory.”
Trump shared the image on his Truth Social account, showing a map of the Strait of Hormuz with the strategic waterway circled beneath the words “New US Territory,” following his previous statements that the strait would become US territory once the war was over.
The White House later reposted Trump’s post on its official X account.
In response, an official Iranian account posted a map of the US showing California highlighted in blue, with the words: “NEW TERRITORY OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN.”
Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister, also responded to Trump’s post, writing: “His illusion regarding the Strait of Hormuz will soon either be corrected, or we will correct the illusions of this illusionist man.”
California, particularly the Los Angeles area, is home to the largest concentration of people of Iranian descent outside of Iran.
According to the Iranian Diaspora Panel organized by UCLA’s Center for Near Eastern Studies, approximately 141,000 Iranian-Americans live in Los Angeles County.
The exchange comes amid high tensions between Tehran and Washington after months of conflict.