Khamenei warns of wider war if US attacks again, dismissing hopes of a policy shift after the midterms
Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei has warned that anyone expecting a shift in US policy after the midterm elections is 'seriously mistaken', and that any renewed US attack would draw a far wider war.
Iran's supreme leader has warned that anyone expecting a change in United States policy towards Tehran after the American midterm elections is "seriously mistaken", and that any renewed American attack would draw a far wider war, in a written statement published on his website on Wednesday, 4 November 2026.
The statement, reported by AFP and carried by Al Jazeera, Dawn and other outlets, came hours after Democrats seized control of both chambers of the United States Congress in Tuesday's midterm elections, a result widely read as a rebuke of President Donald Trump. Iran's supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, addressed those hoping the result might soften Washington's stance directly.
"Those who still harbour even the slightest hope that the behaviour of the hegemonic system might change through partisan or factional shifts, or who imagine that making concessions to the United States can dissuade it from hostility towards the Iranian nation, are seriously mistaken," Khamenei said in the statement.
He went further, warning that the conflict would expand if the United States struck Iran again. "In the event of repeated transgressions, it will take on much wider dimensions," he said, according to AFP, without elaborating on what form a wider response might take.
The message was issued to mark 4 November, Iran's National Day of the Fight Against Global Arrogance, the anniversary of the 1979 seizure of the United States embassy in Tehran. Al Jazeera noted that the date gave the statement a deliberately symbolic setting, linking the present confrontation to the founding moment of the Islamic Republic's break with Washington.
Khamenei also claimed that Iran's control of the Strait of Hormuz had shattered what he called the "myth of America's invincibility", and described the confrontation with the United States as a state of resistance in which, in his words, "every day and every hour" had become a time of opposition to what he called the "Great Satan".
His tone contrasted with that of other Iranian officials on the same day, who struck a more optimistic note about the American vote. Iran's chief negotiator had earlier suggested that American voters had said "no to war", and parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on social media that Iran endorsed the voters' message, according to reports of his post.
The contrasting messages underline a familiar split in Tehran's public posture: officials engaged in diplomacy present the election result as an opening, while the supreme leader, who has the final word on major policy, cautions against reading it as a change of direction in Washington.
The backdrop is a war that began in February 2026 between the United States and Israel on one side and Iran on the other, which has sent fuel prices soaring and driven much of the anger that shaped the midterm result. President Trump himself has acknowledged that the war probably hurt his party, saying voters were probably not ready "for the short-term consequence of paying more for gasoline".
What happens next remains uncertain. The United States has no immediate plans to strike Iran, President Trump told the Financial Times on Tuesday, according to the Express Tribune, even as he has recently threatened to renew the war. Diplomats, meanwhile, continue to discuss a possible deal, with Qatar saying it remains hopeful of an agreement. Khamenei's statement suggests that, whatever the diplomatic track produces, Tehran's leadership does not expect Washington's underlying hostility to change simply because control of Congress has changed hands.
More in Iran
Photo: Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (file image)
IranIran’s chief negotiator says Americans voted “no to war” after Democrats rout Republicans in midterms
Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has said American voters rejected the war with Iran in the midterm elections, warning Washington against betraying what he called the public will, after President Donald Trump acknowledged the conflict hurt his party.
Photo: An oil tanker at sea (file image)
IranIran claims four tankers destroyed after hitting mines near Strait of Hormuz as shipping tensions rise again
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say four oil tankers were destroyed after striking naval mines while trying to pass through a prohibited route south of the Strait of Hormuz, with two other vessels halted and a US-made drone shot down.
Photo: A city skyline in the region (file image)
IranIran says talks with Saudi Arabia are continuing as it seeks a regional security deal without foreign troops
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday that talks with Saudi Arabia are ongoing, as Tehran pushes for new regional security arrangements agreed by countries in the region themselves, without foreign military involvement.