Skip linksSkip to Content Live Navigation menuNewsMiddle EastAfricaAsiaUS & CanadaLatin AmericaEuropeAsia PacificExplainedSportOpinionVideoInteractivesOriginalsFeaturesEconomyHuman RightsClimate CrisisInvestigationsIn PicturesScience & TechnologyPodcastsTravelSponsored Content Live Navigation menuUS-Israel war on IranStrait of HormuzDid Iran capture a US submarine?Why have strikes resumed?Al Jazeera OriginalsNewsLive updates, President Trump admits Iran war ‘largely’ caused Republicans’ US election wipeout, but says he ‘had to do it’.People attend the 47th anniversary of the United States' expulsion from Iran, in Tehran, November 4, 2026 [Majid Asgaripour/Wana via Reuters]By Kristina Harazim and Ahmad ElmounieryPublished On 5 Nov 2026 United States President Donald Trump admits that launching the attack on Iran has largely caused the Republican Party to lose the midterm US elections. But he insists “we had to do it” to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has dismissed the idea that the outcome of the US midterm elections changes anything, saying US hostility towards Iran will persist.