ENGLISH VERSION:
The United States has carried out a limited strike on Iran's Qeshm Island, the largest island in the Strait of Hormuz, even as President Donald Trump says a peace deal with Tehran "could happen". The attack, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, has put the world's most important oil waterway back at the centre of world news on Tuesday, 3 November 2026.
According to the Journal, citing unnamed US officials, American forces attacked Qeshm Island on Monday. It was described as the latest in a series of limited strikes that Washington has secretly carried out against Iran in recent weeks. The strikes were deliberately kept small in scale and were not publicly announced, the report said, so that they would not look like a return to a full military campaign.
Iran's state news agency IRNA reported that five explosions were heard in quick succession on Qeshm Island, and that some residents saw two aircraft flying over the island. The Pentagon referred questions about the reported strikes to US Central Command, which did not immediately respond.
On Tuesday, President Trump himself confirmed the strike in a telephone interview with Fox News. He said Iran had built an anti-aircraft facility on the island and added: "As soon as it was completed, we hit it last night very nicely." US officials speaking anonymously have described the attacks as limited and defensive in nature, and have said they do not signal a return to large-scale operations.
At the same time, Trump has been talking up a possible deal. Speaking at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington on Monday, he said a settlement "could happen" and that "it looks like that's coming together very nicely". He had earlier written on Truth Social that Iran wanted a settlement "as soon as possible". Vice President JD Vance also said Washington had made progress in indirect talks, telling reporters: "We've certainly made some progress. We'll see if we can make some more."
Iran's response has been sharply different. Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Tuesday that Tehran reserved the right to self-defence after the Qeshm attacks. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Iran would "respond forcefully" to any further US strikes, and warned that the two sides remain "far from reaching a deal". Iran's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that Tehran was entering talks with "complete pessimism" and would take part only with caution.
Iranian officials say their seven-point proposal has not changed, but that Tehran is now ready to put it into action within two days instead of a week. The plan, according to reports, calls for quickly reopening the Strait of Hormuz and resuming negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme. In return, mediators are reported to be trying to advance a framework under which Iran would stop its attacks in the strait and the United States would lift its blockade on Iran's ports. Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, insisted Washington must fully and explicitly meet all seven of Tehran's conditions before the strait could be reopened.
Qatari mediators have held two rounds of talks with Iranian officials in recent weeks, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said indirect talks are taking place, describing consultations as "very intensive". Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has said the country's Supreme Leader has granted the government more authority to pursue peace talks.
The wider conflict began in late February, when the United States, alongside Israel, launched a massive wave of surprise strikes on Iran. It has not achieved its war aims and has been stalemated for months. Reports say Trump had earlier suggested fresh strikes could come after Tuesday's US midterm elections, and that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had pushed him for another wave of strikes — which makes Tuesday's twin message of a strike and a possible deal all the more closely watched.
For Pakistan and the wider region, what happens in the Strait of Hormuz matters directly. A large share of the world's oil passes through this narrow waterway, so any threat to it pushes oil prices up — and any sign of a deal pushes them down. Oil prices had already fallen sharply in early November on hopes of de-escalation, a shift that helped Pakistan cut petrol prices from today. Whether the Qeshm strike derails the talks, or proves to be a limited action alongside them, will decide which way that pressure goes next.
What happens next will depend on two questions: does Washington strike again, and does Tehran treat the Qeshm attack as a reason to walk away from the table? For now, both war and talks are running side by side — strikes in secret, and a deal talked about in public.
Sources: The Wall Street Journal (via reports), IRNA, Gulf News live coverage, The Straits Times, Malay Mail, Outlook India, India TV News (3 November 2026).
ROMAN URDU VERSION:
America ne Iran ke Qeshm Island par mehdood hamla kiya hai — ye Strait of Hormuz ka sab se bara jazira hai — jab ke Sadr Donald Trump keh rahe hain ke Iran se aman muahida "ho sakta hai". Wall Street Journal ki report ke mutabiq ye hamla peer ko hua, aur ye un mehdood hamlo ki kadi hai jo America ne pichle hafton mein khufiya tor par kiye.
Iran ki sarkari news agency IRNA ne bataya ke jazeere par aik ke baad aik paanch dhamake sune gaye, aur kuch rehaishiyon ne do tayyare bhi dekhe. Mangal ko Trump ne khud Fox News ko telephone interview mein hamle ki tasdeeq ki aur kaha ke Iran ne wahan aik anti-aircraft facility banayi thi, aur "jaise hi wo mukammal hui, hum ne usay guzri raat khoob nishana banaya".
Doosri taraf, Trump ne peer ko Lincoln Memorial par kaha ke muahida "bohat achhi tarah aage barh raha hai", aur Naib Sadr JD Vance ne bhi kaha ke baat-cheet mein peshraft hui hai. Lekin Iran ka lehja sakht hai: Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi ne kaha ke Tehran ko apne difa ka haq mehfooz hai, aur aik senior Iranian official ne Reuters ko bataya ke mazeed hamlo par "sakht jawab" diya jayega aur muahida abhi "bohat door" hai.
Iran ka saat-nukti proposal Hormuz ko dobara kholne aur nuclear programme par mazakrat dobara shuru karne ki baat karta hai, jab ke Qatar ke saalis Iran aur America ke darmiyan baat-cheet kara rahe hain. Pakistan ke liye ye khabar is liye ahem hai ke Hormuz se guzarne wale tail ki qeematein poori duniya, aur Pakistan ki petrol qeematein bhi, mutasir karti hain. Ab sab ki nazar is par hai ke kya mazakrat aage barhenge ya mazeed hamle unhen rok denge.
){kind=link}
0 Comments