Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced Wednesday that four oil tankers were destroyed after hitting naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz. According to the semi-official Tasnim news agency, two of the vessels were still burning, and two additional tankers had been seized.
The IRGC claimed the tankers were attempting to travel through a prohibited southern route in the Strait of Hormuz. The BBC has not independently verified these claims.
This incident follows US officials stating the US military had launched strikes on Iran a day prior. The IRGC also reported that three tankers were destroyed by mines early Tuesday and that they had shot down an MQ-9 drone over the Strait. The earlier US strikes on Qeshm were reportedly in response to the IRGC firing on a US aircraft.
Iran's parliamentary speaker and top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, commented on the recent US midterm election results, suggesting they indicated American opposition to war. He warned Washington against betraying its public will, stating that if the US government "betrays their public will to serve international paymasters and blackmailers, it will learn our 'no' comes with a nightmare."
US President Donald Trump, acknowledging Republican midterm election losses were partly due to the conflict with Iran and increased gas prices, stated he did not regret initiating it. In a prior interview, Trump suggested he was satisfied with the conflict's state and did not consider it a "war." He also remarked that while Israel was "locked and loaded" for potential further action against Iran, "there may be no need for it."
Talks aimed at resolving the conflict, which began after joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran in February, have been stalled for months. Ghalibaf asserted that Iran "will not surrender" and placed the responsibility for preventing a war on the US, warning that any "strategic mistake" by Washington would lead to a "new battlefield."
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian maintained his government's commitment to resolving the crisis through dialogue, stating "No-one will benefit from this war" if hostilities were to resume.
Iran had previously closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to an attack and indicated it would only reopen the waterway if the US agreed to terms in its peace plan. A condensed version of this seven-step plan could be implemented in two days if accepted by the US, according to Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei.