Donald Trump speaks as Secretary of State Marco Rubio (R) and Vice President J.D. Vance (L) listen in the Oval Office of the White House, Washington, D.C., April 23, 2026 (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)
UPDATES: US War on Iran, Day 195 — Americans Strike Iranian Oil Tankers
UPDATE 0550 GMT:
Seven monitored vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, compared with 12 on Tuesday and below the 10-day average of 14.
Four vessels exited the waterway while three entered.
The Trump Administration maintained that some tankers are passing through the Strait with their transponders switched off.
UPDATE 0547 GMT:
Strikes are reported across the coastal area of southern Iran, including on Sirik and Minab County, and on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz.
UPDATE 0546 GMT:
Israel has shelled Wadi al-Hujeir and Wadi al-Salouqi in southern Lebanon overnight into dawn. Explosions are also reported in the town of al-Mansouri.
ORIGINAL ENTYR: US Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and other senior officials have privately warned Donald Trump that the War on Iran could last through his second term into 2029.
Officials told The Wall Street Journal of the warning that Iran can hold out against US economic and military warfare.
The assessments contrast with Trump’s public declarations. He said on Wednesday, “I think war is going to end immediately after the election because they can’t hold out any longer. They’re desperate to try and affect the election.”
A White House spokesperson insisted, “President Trump has destroyed Iran’s military capabilities and is crippling what’s left of its abysmal economy with the most powerful naval blockade in world history and crushing sanctions. Only President Trump knows what he will do and when.”
Vance has been opposed to the war since it was launched alongside Israel on February 2028. Rubio has been more hawkish, at least in public.
While there is still a nominal ceasefire, the confrontation has escalated this week with attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, inside Iran, and across the region. On Wednesday, Iran said it attacked 10 ships near the Strait after the US sank five Iranian oil tankers.
The Revolutionary Guards also fired missiles on bases in Jordan, damaging multiple US warplanes at the Muwaffaq Salti Airbase. One A-10 Warthog lost a wing and around eight F-15s sustained light damage.
The Guards said the war could end if the Trump camp stopped threatening the Islamic Republic and met Iranian conditions, including interference in its nuclear and missile programs; an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon; an end to the blockade of Yemen; and the release of $24 billion in Iran’s frozen assets.
Amid the escalation, the global price of Brent crude oil rose above $100 per barrel for the first time since July. It currently stands at $101.03.
