The United States carried out what a U.S. official called defensive strikes on some Iranian targets in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, on the eve of the midterm elections.
The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the targets were “Iranians using surface to air missiles against U.S. assets.” Iranian state television reported explosions on Qeshm Island.
What We Know So Far
The strikes appeared to be limited and not a return to full combat operations, the official said. The Wall Street Journal reported them first. A second official told Reuters the strikes were defensive measures against Iranians using surface to air missiles. Fox News, citing officials, said they were carried out in response to Iran firing at a U.S. aircraft. The Pentagon referred questions to U.S. Central Command, which did not respond to Reuters.
Thousands of U.S. troops remain in the waters off Iran to maintain a naval blockade meant to keep tankers carrying Iranian oil from reaching global markets, and a third aircraft carrier and thousands more troops are on their way to the Middle East.
October saw the most attacks on commercial ships in the strait since March, as Iran tried to raise economic pressure on the U.S. to lift the blockade.
What Authorities Are Saying
Vice President JD Vance offered measured optimism before the strikes were confirmed. He said last week he sent a letter to Iran’s security chief, Mohsen Rezaei. “We’ve had a number of good conversations with the Iranians,” Vance told reporters, adding that he and President Donald Trump feel “pretty good about the prospects” of a negotiated settlement. Trump has said the letter focused on helping Iran with “medical supplies and various things.” Rezaei told state television that “the tone has completely changed” from the U.S. and called it a “very good sign.” He gave no details and said he had not responded.
In a speech Monday billed as his closing argument, Trump noted that oil prices dropped sharply, and downplayed the conflict, which has cost U.S. taxpayers at least $47 billion. “I don’t know if you even call it a war, because we haven’t been doing any fighting for months,” he said.
Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, told military chiefs that the response to “any kind and level of threat” from the U.S. or Israel should be immediate and without “geographic limits,” and urged widening the list of potential targets. Iranian officials say publicly they are ready for war or diplomacy and want guarantees that the U.S. will keep its side of any deal. The U.S. and Israel have twice attacked Iran while it was negotiating over its disputed nuclear program.
Differing Accounts
The accounts differ on how recent U.S. fighting has been. The AP said the Trump administration was last known to have carried out attacks in early September, and noted that Trump had previously said the U.S. would not launch new strikes before Tuesday’s midterms. The Wall Street Journal, as cited by Reuters, said the Qeshm attack was the latest in a series of strikes carried out by Washington in recent weeks. The reasons given for Monday’s strikes also vary between the official’s missile account and Fox News’ report of Iran firing at a U.S. aircraft.
Why This Matters
The unpopular war and its effect on U.S. gasoline prices and the economy have been a vulnerability for Republicans trying to keep control of Congress, the AP said. The region is on edge about the prospect of the U.S. resuming full scale operations in a war now more than eight months old.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pushed for another wave of strikes after the U.S. elections, according to two regional officials and a third person familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity. One said Netanyahu is working with senior U.S. officials to persuade Trump to launch a quick but extensive air campaign and that the president has not appeared to decide. Netanyahu pressed for strikes in a weekend call with Trump, who would not commit to military action, according to a person briefed on it. The AP said a return to war could help Netanyahu form an emergency government after he and his allies lost their parliamentary majority in last week’s elections. The Israeli government did not immediately comment, and the White House did not directly respond.
The two officials said diplomatic efforts have made progress, with Qatari mediators holding two rounds of talks with Iranian officials last week. They are trying to advance a framework in which Iran would stop attacks in the strait in return for the U.S. lifting its blockade on Iranian ports, and more talks are planned this week. Other U.S. allies in the region warn that strikes could destabilize the region, and could lead Iran allied Houthi rebels in Yemen to step up attacks on Saudi Arabia and Red Sea shipping, a third regional official said. Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman spoke by phone with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Monday about regional developments and the Houthis’ continued attacks.
At the Manama Dialogue security summit in Bahrain, United Arab Emirates presidential adviser Anwar Gargash said the U.S. and Iranian positions are far apart, and “we have to worry about the worst” if not bridged. Egypt’s foreign minister, Badr Abdelatty, said the next escalation “will be more dangerous, more destructive.” China will send a special envoy to Iran, Oman and Saudi Arabia in early to mid November, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.
An AP analysis found Iranian strikes on more than two dozen U.S. bases since the war began have caused billions of dollars in equipment damage.
What Happens Next
Trump has hinted at renewed attacks after Tuesday’s midterms, but indicated after his Monday speech at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool that he may be thinking otherwise, Reuters said. More mediated talks are planned this week.
Sources: the Associated Press and Reuters, citing a U.S. official, The Wall Street Journal, Fox News, IRNA and Iranian state television
