Iran war won't end until after US midterm elections, says Trump

• Donald Trump said the war with Iran is unlikely to end before the November midterm elections, despite previously predicting a much shorter conflict.
• Oil prices climbed to $100 a barrel as fighting intensified across the region, raising concerns about further pressure on US consumers.

US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he expects the war with Iran to continue until after November's midterm elections, arguing that Tehran will not be able to sustain the conflict much longer.

"I think the war's going to end immediately after the election because they can't hold out any longer," Trump told reporters while traveling to Texas for the Republican Party's first convention ahead of the midterms.

Trump also said oil prices would remain elevated until the election before falling sharply afterward.

"Right after the election, oil prices are going to be tumbling downward," he said, adding that the war would take "a little bit longer than the midterm."

Trump is facing declining approval ratings and growing pressure from within the Republican Party to bring the conflict to an end.

He accused Iran of trying to influence the US elections by seeking to weaken Republicans and said Tehran wanted "a nice weak group of people" in government so it could pursue a nuclear weapon.

Iran has repeatedly denied seeking nuclear weapons.

Trump said further negotiations with Tehran were possible, but added: "It's not something we're looking at."

Oil prices rose to $100 a barrel on Wednesday for the first time since July as fighting intensified and attacks targeted energy infrastructure across the region.

The US military said it had attacked five oil tankers linked to Iran. Iranian state media subsequently reported that Tehran had attacked two US Navy destroyers and eight oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, claiming the vessels sustained heavy damage.

The Iran-linked Houthis in Yemen also launched attacks on Saudi Arabia a day earlier, with Saudi authorities reporting fires at energy facilities.

The escalation has raised concerns that higher fuel and shipping costs could feed into broader inflation and put additional pressure on interest rates in the United States.