US launches limited strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island in defensive move

The United States military executed limited strikes against Iran's Qeshm Island on Monday. Three US officials characterized the operation as a defensive measure designed to protect American assets in the region. One official stated the action was a direct response to Iran firing at a US aircraft. The strikes were not the major combat operation that officials have previously contemplated. The Wall Street Journal first revealed the operation and reported that similar secret strikes had occurred previously.

Another US official described the move as a defensive measure against Iranians using surface-to-air missiles against US assets. The administration deliberately kept the attack under wraps to avoid overstating the defensive nature of the move. Iran's state-affiliated Fars News Agency reported hearing several explosions on Qeshm Island in the early hours of Tuesday morning local time. Residents on nearby Hengam Island and in the port city of Bandar Abbas also heard the blasts. Both locations sit near or in the Strait of Hormuz.

Qeshm Island sits about 14 miles from Bandar Abbas. The location is key to Iran's attempts to assert control over traffic through the waterway. Approximately 20 million barrels of oil passed through the strait daily before the war began. The US has targeted the island previously during the conflict. The attack coincided with President Donald Trump suggesting that diplomacy with Tehran was still active. Trump wrote on social media that an agreement could happen.

During a Fox News interview that aired Monday night, Trump did not specifically address the new strike reports. He stated the US might have to target Pickaxe Mountain. Israel believes Tehran has stored part of its enriched uranium stockpile and advanced enrichment centrifuges at this suspected underground site. Trump said the US could complete the operation in one hour at any time. He has teased the possibility of this attack multiple times since the war began. In July, Trump said the US would hit the site probably pretty soon.

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned on Saturday that a major new attack would be met with a response without geographical limitations. A senior security official in Tehran told CNN that Iran would try to target infrastructure beyond oil facilities, including AI. Earlier this month, Trump said the US would not attack Iran before the midterms. He did not rule out or confirm if strikes would resume afterward.

In the Fox interview, Trump defended his decision to launch the war in Iran. He suggested there had not been recent fighting. Trump stated the US was not fighting a war but a very soft war. He noted there was no war raging and that it could happen if Iran did not make a deal. Trump said the Iranians wanted to make a deal very badly and that there was a very good chance of an agreement.

Vice President JD Vance told reporters on Monday that the US and Iran had made some progress toward an off ramp to the war. Vance said the Iranians were always a little unpredictable. He noted that the president retains kinetic and non-kinetic options. Vance added that he had just spoken with the president and both men felt pretty good about a potential deal.

Oil prices rose in early Asian trading on Tuesday after news of the Qeshm Island strike broke. Before the news, oil prices had been tumbling as the market weighed diplomatic developments. Gasoline and diesel prices remain on track to be the most expensive of any US Election Day in history.