U.S. struck Iran’s Qeshm island, WSJ reports

 The U.S. struck Iran’s Qeshm island on Monday, the latest in a series of limited strikes on the country in recent weeks, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday evening. 

The strikes came even as U.S. President Donald Trump touted the possibility of a peace deal and called for no attacks on Iran until after the U.S. midterm elections on November 3. 

But the U.S. has remained engaged in smaller-scale strikes against Iran for several weeks, the WSJ reported, citing unnamed U.S. officials. Washington had not announced the attacks.

Separately, Iranian media reported several explosions on Qeshm, which is located in the Strait of Hormuz. 

Qeshm is an island at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz and houses a large underground missile site and a desalination plant. Trump had repeatedly threatened to attack Iranian missile and water infrastructure, amid a continued standoff between the two countries.

Trump had earlier signaled a potential return to hostilities after the midterm elections. Media reports said the U.S. and Israel were preparing a major post-elections offensive against Tehran. 

But Trump was seen tempering his rhetoric before the beginning of in-person voting on Tuesday. He had earlier also raised the prospect of a peace deal with Iran. 

Trump and the Republicans risk losing their majority in both chambers of Congress, amid growing ire among voters over rising fuel costs-- which were caused chiefly by the U.S.-Iran war.