Fires on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and anticipation of Trump's decision on resuming the war

Iran's Revolutionary Guard announced fires on two oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, raising the number of burning tankers since Wednesday to eight, amid anticipation of Trump's decision on resuming the war after the Republican defeat in the midterm elections.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard announced on Thursday fires on two oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, one of which struck a naval mine and the other veered off course, raising the number of tankers Tehran reported burning since Wednesday to eight. These developments come amid continued uncertainty regarding the US administration's stance on the war against Iran, and whether President Donald Trump will decide to resume military operations following the Republican defeat in the midterm elections and the Democrats winning a majority in both houses of Congress. Axios quoted US officials as saying the US military is finalizing its preparations for a possible resumption of the war, including sending additional military reinforcements to the region, but the final decision remains with Trump. Meanwhile, the advisor to the Iranian Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, warned that any resumption of the war would widen the scope of confrontation in the region, stressing that betting on changing US behavior through exchanging administrations or parties is a mistaken bet.