Iran considers the American response to the Hormuz plan “unconvincing”; Trump confirms strikes | US-Israeli war against Iran

Iran has described the US response to seven conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz as “unconvincing”, as US President Donald Trump confirmed launching strikes on an Iranian island near the strategic waterway.

Tuesday’s developments came as Qatar stepped up diplomatic efforts to avoid a resumption of the U.S.-Iran war and another oil tanker was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz.

The indirect talks focus on an Iranian proposal to reopen the waterway over two days, if the United States meets Tehran’s seven demands, including lifting sanctions and ending the U.S. naval blockade.

Despite reports of progress in recent days, Mohsen Rezaei, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said Tuesday that Washington’s response had been insufficient.

“The U.S. response to Iran’s rights and demands has not been convincing, and it must respond fully and explicitly to Iran’s seven conditions and act accordingly,” he wrote on X.

“Only in this case will the Strait of Hormuz be reopened.”

His message comes after Majed al-Ansari, a spokesperson for Qatar’s foreign ministry, said talks were continuing and both sides “remain committed to the negotiation process.”

He said Qatar was facilitating “real-time exchange of proposals between” the United States and Iran.

Attack on Qeshm Island

In Washington, D.C., Trump confirmed that the United States had struck Iran early Tuesday, telling Fox News that the strikes targeted an anti-aircraft facility.

He called the operation a “minor attack” and said it was “not a war.”

“They built an anti-aircraft installation. It took them about two months. We witnessed its construction. As soon as it was completed, we struck it last night,” he said.

Iranian media said the strikes hit the Gulf island of Qeshm near the Strait of Hormuz. Earlier in the day, U.S. officials told U.S. media that the strikes had been “defensive” and followed Iranian fire against a U.S. aircraft.

The strikes came as U.S. media, citing U.S. officials, reported that Central Command had prepared plans for strikes that could begin as early as Wednesday, after the midterm elections, when three U.S. aircraft carriers would be in the region.

The crucial election could cost Trump’s Republicans control of the House and Senate, and fears have grown that Trump could carry out a threatened attack on Iran once the vote is over.

American media have already announced that the planned campaign will be short and intense.

Meanwhile, Trump reiterated his warnings about further military action on Tuesday, saying: “I’m not looking to… kill a lot of people” and “If we have to do it, we have to.”

In a previous interview with the Financial Times, he suggested that he was satisfied with the state of the confrontation with Iran. “It seems like we’re getting everything we want,” he said in a six-minute telephone interview, as quoted by the newspaper.

Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei ordered the army this weekend to respond to any threat immediately and without geographic limits, and to update its list of targets.

Iranian officials have suggested that European countries and submarine cables in the Gulf could be targeted.

Oil tanker hit in Hormuz

As authorities assessed the possibility of escalation, commercial shipping came under attack again.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Wednesday that four oil tankers were destroyed after hitting naval mines while trying to cross a prohibited shipping lane south of the Strait of Hormuz.

The tankers remained on fire after the explosions, the IRGC said in a statement published by the official IRNA news agency. Two other vessels were arrested for violating navigation restrictions, the statement added.

Earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Commercial Operations (UKMTO) reported that two unidentified projectiles struck the engine room of an oil tanker about 14 nautical miles (26 km) northeast of the Omani coastal village of Limah on Tuesday. No casualties have been reported.

It was not possible to independently verify whether the incidents reported by the UKMTO and the IRGC were linked.

The IRGC also claimed its air defense forces shot down a US-made MQ-9 drone over the strait at 4:30 a.m. local time (0100 GMT), describing it as the 56th such aircraft shot down.

The statement said the operations were carried out by the IRGC’s naval and aerospace forces, which inflicted “heavy blows on the enemy.”

John Mearsheimer, an American political scientist, questioned whether a new short-term bombing campaign could achieve Washington’s goals, warning that Iranian retaliation could draw the United States into a longer confrontation.

“If the 40-day bombing campaign didn’t work, how is the three-day bombing campaign going to work? he asked in a video commentary, referring to the initial US-Israeli air campaign and proposals for a new, shorter offensive.

He argued that an Iranian response could provoke further escalation in the United States, thereby increasing the damage to the global economy.