# US Strikes Iranian Air Defences on Qeshm Island as Brent Ends Its Worst Week Since April 2020 Brent settled at $98.32 after losing more than 16% on the week, while Qatari mediators push a two-day package that would lift the US blockade and release frozen Iranian funds. - Published: 2026-11-07T05:12:31.983Z - Canonical: https://polylog.news/2026-11-07/us-strikes-iranian-air-defences-on-qeshm-island-as-brent-end - Publisher: Polylog (Global desk) - Section: geopolitics - Sources: [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/7/trump-confirms-new-us-strikes-on-irans-qeshm-island), [South China Morning Post](https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3373633/trump-confirms-fresh-iran-strikes-days-after-voters-punish-war-polls), [The Hindu](https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/us-military-carries-out-fresh-targeted-strikes-on-iran-as-tehran-weighs-mediators-proposals/article71677274.ece), [Investing.com](https://www.investing.com/news/commodities-news/oil-rises-on-fresh-tanker-attacks-but-heads-for-steep-weekly-loss-5006219) President Donald Trump said US forces carried out new limited strikes on Iran on Friday against an Iranian air-defence system, and he claimed "a lot of progress" in negotiations with Tehran, [Al Jazeera reported](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/7/trump-confirms-new-us-strikes-on-irans-qeshm-island). Iranian state media reported two explosions in the Suza area of Qeshm Island, which sits in the waterway that carries Gulf oil exports, [according to the South China Morning Post](https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3373633/trump-confirms-fresh-iran-strikes-days-after-voters-punish-war-polls). The Hong Kong paper noted that the strikes came days after US voters punished the war at the polls. Trump described the target as "a little bit of an anti-aircraft device" that US forces "knocked out in about 15 minutes, maybe five," [The Hindu reported](https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/us-military-carries-out-fresh-targeted-strikes-on-iran-as-tehran-weighs-mediators-proposals/article71677274.ece). Iranian media also reported that an MQ-1 drone was shot down over Qeshm. Neither side's account of the damage has been independently confirmed. The diplomatic gap is unchanged. Qatari mediators have proposed two days of trust-building steps, including lifting the US blockade and releasing some frozen Iranian funds, [Arab News reported](https://www.arabnews.com/middle-east/us-military-carries-out-new-targeted-strike-on-iran-as-tehrans-leaders-weigh-mediators-proposals-3010264). Tehran demands sanctions relief, the release of frozen assets, compensation for war damage and an end to the blockade. It says it will not discuss its nuclear programme until those conditions are met. Washington insists the nuclear programme must be part of any comprehensive agreement. Oil traders have been betting on the talks. Brent rose 3 cents on Friday to settle at $98.32 a barrel but fell more than 16% over the week, [CNBC reported](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/11/06/oil-price-today-brent-wti.html). [Investing.com](https://www.investing.com/news/commodities-news/oil-rises-on-fresh-tanker-attacks-but-heads-for-steep-weekly-loss-5006219) described it as Brent's worst week since April 2020, and LSEG data cited by Reuters showed the largest absolute weekly drop in records going back to 1988, [per a summary of that report](https://rallies.ai/news/brent-oil-benchmark-set-for-biggest-weekly-drop-since-2020-e95baab0caecaf95). Physical risk remains. Iran reported three more attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, and Bob McNally of Rapidan Energy put the probability that fighting resumes at 80%. ## What this means The week's fall in crude reflects positioning around one political judgment: that the midterm defeat limits Trump's appetite for a wider war. That judgment may be right about a large campaign and wrong about the limited strikes Trump has now shown he will still order. Tanker attacks are continuing, and the core trade between a nuclear discussion and sanctions relief is unresolved. The exposed parties are oil importers such as India, whose rupee gained on cheaper crude, and Gulf exporters whose revenue depends on the premium. Tanker insurers price each incident in the strait. The precedent is the 2019 tanker attacks in the Gulf of Oman, when each attack lifted prices briefly and the premium faded within days unless supply was actually lost. The desk's read is that crude will trade in a wide range over the coming weeks, with sharp single-day rises on each strike or tanker attack, instead of resuming a straight decline. That depends on the Qatari package stalling over the nuclear question. If both governments accept the two-day trust-building steps and tanker attacks stop for several weeks, the remaining premium will drain further and this read will be wrong. ## What to watch - Whether Tehran formally answers the Qatari proposal. Acceptance of the blockade-for-funds exchange would be the first concrete step since the midterms. - The weekly count of tanker incidents in the Strait of Hormuz. Continued attacks would mean the physical risk has not fallen as much as the price. - Any further US strikes on Qeshm or other islands in the strait. Repeated "limited" action would show the election result has not ended the strikes.