U.S. Strikes Iran’s Qeshm Island After Revolutionary Guard Fires at American Aircraft

Leave a CommentU.S. Strikes Iran’s Qeshm Island After Revolutionary Guard Fires at American AircraftFeatured

U.S. forces carried out limited strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz late Monday after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired at an American aircraft, U.S. officials told Fox News and Axios.

A senior U.S. official told Fox News correspondent Jennifer Griffin that the strike was defensive, that Iranian forces had fired first, and that it did not signal a broader campaign, Ynet reported. Axios reported that the Guard fired a missile at a U.S. aircraft over the strait and that a U.S. fighter jet then destroyed a surface-to-air missile launcher on the island, according to Kurdistan24. Another U.S. official told the Associated Press that “Iranians using surface to air missiles against U.S. assets” had been targeted (AP via CP24).

The Pentagon and U.S. Central Command did not comment, and no official has spoken about the strike on the record.

Self Reliance Central reported Monday that Iran had offered to reopen Hormuz within two days if Washington met its conditions. The strikes came hours later, on the eve of Election Day.

What Iran reported

Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported five explosions in succession across Qeshm late Monday, and residents said they saw two aircraft overhead, Kurdistan24 reported. The island holds an underground missile installation, a naval base and a desalination plant.

The Guard did not address the U.S. strike directly. It said its forces used electronic warfare to bring down two U.S. MQM-170 reconnaissance drones south of Qeshm and destroyed an MQ-9 east of the strait. Those claims have not been verified, and CENTCOM rejected an earlier Iranian drone claim on Oct. 29, Kurdistan24 reported.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran’s demands had been clearly communicated and that “the ball is in the US court,” Al Jazeera reported. He said the Hormuz plan could be carried out within two days if Washington lifts its naval blockade.

Talks go on

The administration did not announce the operation. A Qatari delegation arrived in Tehran on Monday to meet Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Ynet reported. The framework under discussion would have Iran stop attacking shipping in Hormuz in exchange for the U.S. lifting its blockade of Iranian ports, the AP reported.

“Oil Prices are dropping like a rock, down almost $10 a Barrel, a record, because people feel that there will not be a War with Iran,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Monday. “Iran wants a settlement, as soon as possible. It could happen!”

Vice President JD Vance told reporters, “The president and I both feel pretty good about the prospects for potentially coming to a negotiated settlement. We’re going to keep on working at it.”

On Fox News Monday night, Trump said, “Iran is the number one state sponsor of terror anywhere in the world,” RedState reported. Of Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site, he said, “We might have to go after Pickaxe, but that’s not a big deal,” the Washington Examiner reported.

U.S. crude traded at $98.06 a barrel early Tuesday, Al Jazeera reported.

The bottom line

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard fired at an American aircraft, and within hours a U.S. jet destroyed the launcher, according to U.S. officials. The administration did not use the incident as an excuse to restart the war, and it did not let it go unanswered. Both of those were the right decisions.

Tehran’s foreign ministry says the ball is in Washington’s court. Iran cannot fire missiles at U.S. aircraft one evening and lecture the United States about good faith the next morning. Its two-day plan to reopen Hormuz comes with conditions attached, chiefly the end of the U.S. blockade that is squeezing the regime.

The President has kept two tracks open, talks through Qatar and a military option he says could be carried out quickly. He should keep the blockade in place until the strait is open and the shooting stops, and Iran’s leaders should understand that every shot at an American aircraft will be answered the same way.

Sources