Vice Adm. Robert Harward returned to Fox News on Friday afternoon just days after his last appearance sparked an internet meltdown, with conspiracy-minded social media users insisting the retired Navy officer was actually someone else wearing a hyperrealistic mask.

Speaking with co-host Trace Gallagher on Friday’s segment on The Story, Harward discussed President Donald Trump’s ongoing negotiations with Iran and reacting to Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s warning that there was a “Plan B” if diplomatic approaches fell through.

Asked by Gallagher what this might entail, the vice admiral bluntly replied: “Strikes, I would hope it would involve even boots on the ground. All those things that would compel this regime to capitulate.”

Some viewers, however, will be less keen on Harward’s eyebrow-raising call for “boots on the ground” raids of Iranian cities along the Hormuz coastline and more interested in checking out the vice admiral’s neckline.

During a previous Fox News appearance on Tuesday, some viewers noticed what appeared to be a mysterious separation above Harward’s shirt collar while he discussed the same topic, prompting a wave of online speculation that totally overshadowed his military analysis.

The clip caught fire and went viral online, pushed by liberal and conservative pundits alike, seen by millions of users and eventually sparked a Polymarket bet.

In a statement to Mediaite, Fox News dismissed what was alleged as a “mask line” as just a shadow cast by poor “lighting conditions.”

“Vice Admiral Robert Harward appeared on FOX News Channel earlier this week via a remote, mobile camera operated by an outside vendor,” the network said in the statement. “During the interview, lighting conditions in the van contrasted with the vice admiral’s jacket, which caused a shadow to appear on his neck.”

Indeed, no such “shadow” was visible on Harward’s neck during the Friday segment.

Watch above via Fox News.

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