DUBAI/WASHINGTON. Iran is using new tactics against vessels in and around the Strait of Hormuz, with the stated aim of keeping oil prices high and influencing the US midterm elections, two senior Iranian officials told Reuters on Wednesday. The officials spoke to Reuters from the Gulf region and Washington dateline reporting, and their account arrived as oil edged higher and Tehran rejected the US reply to its conditions for reopening the waterway.
The disclosure matters because it ties the military and economic pressure in the Gulf directly to US domestic politics. It also suggests Tehran sees little incentive to restore normal shipping before the vote.
What the Iranian officials said
According to Reuters, Tehran began changing the type and pace of its attacks about 10 days ago against vessels it considers in breach of its passage restrictions. The officials said the approach was approved at the highest levels of Iran’s leadership and coordinated across the governing system.
One official said the objective is to frustrate efforts by the United States and its allies to bring down global oil prices. A second official added that Tehran would not allow President Donald Trump to lower oil prices before the November elections. Both officials said Iran is moving toward a situation in which no vessel violating its restrictions could pass. One of them predicted “complete closure soon.”
Reuters reported that the attacks are no longer confined to the strait. It said ships have been targeted in waters off the coasts of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in recent days. Maritime security data cited by Reuters showed at least five incidents involving tankers and other commercial vessels around the strait within 48 hours.
US assessment and military picture
A US military official, speaking anonymously, confirmed one significant change to Reuters. After US strikes destroyed much of Iran’s radar capability, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps began using unarmed spotters in small boats to identify potential targets, including US naval vessels.
The same official described a constrained Iranian position. Unwilling to risk its remaining fast boats, Iran had been unable to stop a rise in oil exports through the strait, particularly after US strikes devastated its navy. Benzinga, summarising US remarks, reported that shipments through Hormuz have exceeded pre-conflict levels, excluding Iranian oil, which remains under a US blockade. That claim comes from the US side and was not independently verified in the sources reviewed.
The two accounts point to a contest over perception as much as capacity. Washington says traffic is recovering. Tehran says it can still deter the shipping that matters most to insurers and charterers, which in practice is a function of perceived risk rather than total transits.
Background: a stalled diplomatic track
Tehran has sought to exert control over the strait since the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28. The waterway carried about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas trade before the war.
Diplomacy has not kept pace. Iran presented a proposal during the UN General Assembly under which the strait could reopen, with normal passage restored within seven days, if seven conditions were met. The US replied via Qatari intermediaries. On Sunday, Iran’s security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, called the US response “insufficient”, according to state media quoted by Reuters.
Rezaei said Washington had accepted some conditions while others remained unclear. In a post on X he also stressed there would be “no return to the status quo ante” between the two countries. The White House did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on his remarks.
The US has not signalled a new military move before the vote. Reuters reported that Trump has been weighing next steps but has said he will not attack again before the election, while the US presses its naval blockade of Iranian ports and extends sanctions. Benzinga reported that Trump continues to favour diplomacy but is prepared to impose further consequences if Tehran refuses to negotiate.
Market and political implications
Oil responded modestly. Prices rose on Wednesday after two vessels were struck in the strait, with Brent futures up 0.6% at $106.32 a barrel and US West Texas Intermediate up 0.7% at $94.80 as of 0345 GMT. One analyst quoted by Reuters also pointed to the separate Houthi-Saudi conflict as a source of supply concern, and to expectations that higher Russian diesel exports could ease market tightness and limit sharp moves.
The political stakes are high. Reuters noted that the war, which carries a monthly cost of about $3 billion, has become a key issue on the campaign trail for the elections that will decide control of Congress. The standoff has left energy markets exposed to further disruption, with attack risks and high shipping and insurance costs complicating the restoration of normal traffic.
The claims should be read with caution. They come from anonymous officials on one side of the conflict, and public statements of intent to sway an election may also serve as signalling to Washington. Reuters did not publish details of the new tactics, and the UK Maritime Trade Operations monitor had not immediately published a report matching Iran’s claims on Wednesday regarding one reported ship fire.
What to watch
- Shipping incident data: UKMTO notices and insurer advisories will show whether attacks continue beyond the strait, especially off Qatar and the UAE, and whether war-risk premiums rise.
- Brent and WTI: a sustained move above current levels, with Brent near $106, would test the officials’ stated aim of resisting any price decline.
- Qatari-mediated exchanges: any US clarification of the conditions Rezaei called unclear, or any new Iranian reply, would show whether the diplomatic channel is still alive.
- US posture before 3 November: the administration’s stated reluctance to strike again before the vote, and any change to the naval blockade or sanctions.
- Gulf spillover: the interaction with the escalating Houthi-Saudi exchanges, which are adding to regional supply risk.
Sources
- Iran shifting tactics to step up attacks on shipping before US vote, officials say (Reuters via Yahoo)
- Iran shifting tactics to step up attacks on shipping before US vote, officials say (Reuters via BOE Report)
- Iran Adopts New Tactics to Target Ships in Hormuz Ahead of US Midterm Elections (Khaama Press)
- Oil prices climb as Iran deploys new tactics to target ships transiting Hormuz (Reuters via BOE Report)
- Iran Changes Tactics, Targets Shipping to Keep Oil Prices High (Benzinga)
- Iran Says US Response to Its Proposal to Reopen Hormuz Was 'Insufficient' (Reuters via US News)
- Iran says US response to seven conditions is 'inadequate' (Gulf News)
- Iran adopting new tactics in Hormuz ahead of U.S. midterm vote (Investing.com via Yahoo Singapore)
Top image: OpenStreetMap / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)
This article was produced by the Intelligence Report Desk. Sources are linked below.
