The pre-midterm lull ended with US strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island, and Hormuz talks through Qatar and Pakistan have stalled. Russia hit Ukraine's grid with 289 drones ahead of US-Russia-Ukraine talks in Abu Dhabi on 10 and 11 November.
Qeshm Island sits astride the Strait of Hormuz, where US officials said limited defensive strikes hit IRGC air-defense positions on the eve of the midterms. Source
On 2 November, the eve of the midterms, the US struck Iran's Qeshm Island. Officials in Washington described it as a limited, defensive reply to Revolutionary Guard fire on a US aircraft. President Donald Trump called it minor and said he was in no rush to widen the war. The Guard said it had shot down US drones. With the vote done, whatever informal hold Trump had on a bigger offensive has lapsed.
