Iran Hails US Vote as Khamenei Says Policy Will Not Change

Iran reacts to US midterms results with two very different messages. Senior officials welcomed the heavy defeat of Donald Trump’s Republicans, saying American voters had rejected the war. However, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned on Wednesday, November 4, that anyone expecting Washington’s policy to change was “seriously mistaken”.

The comments came hours after Democrats won control of both houses of Congress. Trump himself has said the war with Iran played a part in his party’s losses. In his view, the rise in fuel prices hurt most.

Ghalibaf: Americans said “no to war”

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the parliament speaker who also leads Iran’s side in talks with the US, was quick to respond. “Conscience or the cost of living, Americans said NO TO WAR, and we endorse this message,” he wrote on X.

He then added a warning. If Washington ignored the wishes of its own voters, he said, Iran’s refusal would come with a “Nightmare”.

Other officials went further. Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to the supreme leader, said Trump’s own voters had delivered him a slap in the face, Al Jazeera reported. Judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei also said Iran had beaten Trump both in war and in politics.

Khamenei warns against false hope

By contrast, the supreme leader’s written statement was far more cautious. Anyone hoping that a change of party in Washington would change the “hegemonic system” was “seriously mistaken”, he said. He also warned against thinking that concessions could end US hostility.

Khamenei also warned that the conflict would grow if the US and Israel attacked again. If such attacks happen again, he said, the war’s scope would become “much wider”, AFP reported.

His message marked the anniversary of the 1979 takeover of the American embassy in Tehran, which falls on November 4. Iran observes the date each year with rallies against the United States. Khamenei, who took power in March, has not appeared in public since the war began.

Trump admits the war hurt Republicans

In Washington, Trump linked part of the result to the war. “I think a part of it was Iran,” he told Fox News. In his view, voters backed his Iran policy but were not ready for the short-term cost of paying more for petrol.

Separately, he told CBS News that the conflict would end “when I say it ends”, the BBC reported. Before the vote, he had also told the Financial Times that US forces were ready to act if needed, though action might not be necessary.

In recent weeks, US and Israeli leaders have warned of renewed attacks if the two sides fail to reach a deal. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, on the other hand, has said his government wants to settle the crisis “through dialogue”.

Tension in the Strait of Hormuz

Meanwhile, the situation at sea remains tense. On Wednesday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) claimed that naval mines had set four oil tankers on fire in the Strait of Hormuz. It said the ships had tried to use a southern route that Iran says it has banned.

Nobody has confirmed that claim. BBC Verify said it had found no evidence that the attacks destroyed four tankers. Separately, the UK Maritime Trade Operations centre said two unknown projectiles struck a tanker off Oman’s Musandam peninsula on Tuesday evening. It reported no casualties.

The IRGC also said it shot down another US MQ-9 drone. No one has independently verified this either.

Iran reacts to US midterms: what it means for talks

Indirect talks between Iran and the US, mediated by Qatar with Pakistan also involved, are continuing. Iran’s foreign ministry says the basis remains a seven-step proposal it submitted in September.

Some in Tehran believe a Democratic Congress could restrain Trump, Al Jazeera’s correspondent reported. Others, however, fear he could respond to the defeat by escalating. For now, shipping through the strait remains heavily restricted, and Brent crude is still trading above $100 a barrel.

For Pakistan, which imports most of its fuel, any shift between talks and renewed fighting will be felt quickly at the pump.