US Carries Out Limited Defensive Strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island Near Hormuz

United States forces conducted limited strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, November 2, 2026, US officials confirmed. The action was described as defensive and came after Iranian forces fired surface-to-air missiles at American assets. It does not appear to mark a return to large-scale combat.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the strikes, citing US officials. Iranian state media outlet IRNA reported several explosions on the island that evening. A second US official said the targets were Iranian surface-to-air missile systems being used against US aircraft or vessels. Fox News, citing officials, said the strikes responded to Iranian fire directed at a US aircraft. US Central Command did not immediately comment.

Qeshm is Iran’s largest island and sits close to the narrowest part of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20 million barrels of oil passed daily before the current conflict disrupted traffic. The island hosts a naval base, an underground missile facility and a major desalination plant. Previous rounds of fighting have already targeted it. US officials have discussed the possibility of seizing the island to limit Iranian ability to threaten commercial shipping.

The strikes form part of a series of limited, previously undisclosed operations Washington has carried out against Iran in recent weeks. One official told the Journal that the administration deliberately kept the campaign quiet so as not to signal an intention to resume major combat. President Donald Trump had said earlier on Monday that the US had not been fighting for months and that he was in no rush to decide on further action. Vice President JD Vance said he and Trump felt optimistic about the prospects for a negotiated settlement.

Iranian negotiators left talks with Qatari mediators in Doha on Monday after three days of discussions. A draft proposal based on a seven-step Iranian plan from September is circulating. Iran’s Foreign Ministry has said the basis of the talks is reopening the Strait. Major differences remain over Iran’s nuclear programme, sanctions relief and security arrangements. Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has told commanders that any renewed attack must be met with an immediate and effective response without geographical limitations.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been pressing Trump for another wave of strikes on Iran after the US midterm elections, according to regional officials. Oil prices rose in early Asian trade on Tuesday after reports of the Qeshm strikes, with Brent climbing about 0.5 percent to around $105 a barrel. Earlier on Monday prices had fallen sharply on hopes that talks would succeed.

The action comes on the eve of US midterm elections in which the Iran conflict and its effect on energy prices and the cost of living have become a political liability for Republicans. Trump’s approval rating sits near a career low. The strikes show that limited military activity continues even as public messaging emphasises diplomacy. Whether the pattern holds after the midterms will depend on the results and on the progress of the Doha channel.

No casualty figures from the Qeshm strikes have been released by either side. Iranian media described the explosions but did not specify damage. The episode adds to the record of low-visibility operations that have kept pressure on Iranian capabilities around Hormuz without a formal resumption of the wider campaign.