IranA Draft and a Warning: Qatar Puts a New Deal Before Tehran, Washington Readies Its Options, and the IAEA Says It Cannot Account for Iran’s Uranium
Day 243 in one line: a new draft from Qatar reached Tehran on the same day Washington’s military options were being readied and the UN’s nuclear watchdog said it could no longer account for Iran’s enriched uranium.
Qatar’s Draft
Qatar presented Iran with a new draft deal to end the war and expects a response this week, Reuters reported. Iran said it welcomed negotiations, according to The National, but an Iranian official told Reuters the latest mediation offered only unacceptable ideas. CNBC later reported that Vice President Vance had sent a letter this week through Qatari mediators to Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council. Trump indicated the US had reached out to Iran over potential humanitarian aid.
"Anything’s Possible"
At a rally in Texas on Tuesday evening, US time, reported after midnight UTC, Trump said of strikes after the midterms, "I can’t tell you that" and that anything was possible; he said the war would end very soon, claimed the US had destroyed 288 Iranian fighter jets and 159 ships, and floated renaming the Strait of Hormuz after himself. Military and official sources told Fox News movements were under way in the Middle East to give him options, and the US reportedly alerted Gulf allies to a possible new round of intense fighting after the vote. Fox noted Trump has called off major strikes six times since July. The pledge of no strikes before November 3 stands.
The IAEA, and the Bill
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi told the UN Security Council the agency cannot verify whether Iran has diverted nuclear material, including highly enriched uranium. The US military estimated the cost of the war at $47.1 billion, a figure Fox reported as 25 percent above the Pentagon’s earlier estimate. Brent traded between $114 and $116.5 a barrel.
Saudi Arabia and Aden
The US Embassy warned of potential attacks on airports in Saudi Arabia and urged extreme caution for anyone using them. Houthi missiles struck Aden airport, the sixth such attack, and Yemen’s transport ministry warned of risks to civil aviation; civilians were reported injured without a figure. The Houthis said a Saudi strike killed 14. Logged late from October 27: Saudi air defences intercepted a Houthi ballistic missile launched toward Taif on Tuesday night.
Israel: The Count Continues
With 90 percent of votes counted late on October 28, the Central Elections Committee’s partial results gave Netanyahu’s bloc 53 seats and Gadi Eisenkot’s 48. The 65-seat opposition figure Haaretz reported on Day 242 combined Eisenkot’s bloc with the Arab-led parties. Netanyahu assured coalition partners Ben Gvir and Smotrich he would not abandon them.
Status Assessment
Tracker status holds at WAR RESUMED. Day 243 runs the two tracks side by side: a Qatari draft and a Vance letter on one, military options and allied warnings on the other, with the IAEA unable to account for the uranium at the heart of the dispute. No US strike on Iranian territory has been reported since early September. No ceasefire is in force. The midterms are six days away.