Iran cut the window for reopening the Strait of Hormuz from seven days to two and attached conditions Washington has not answered, while its supreme leader ordered retaliation with no geographic limits. Tehran is selling speed, and the invoice is sanctions relief before the nuclear file.
October set the record for attacks on shipping in this war, and each side published the count that sustains its case. In the same weekend Qatari mediators carried a revised draft back to Tehran, and the official holding the American letter said he had not answered it.
The Houthis fired at the airport one day after it reopened and at the compound where Yemen’s recognized government sits. What is being contested is the state’s own address, and the bill lands on residents stockpiling food and looking for a way out.
Iran announced seven tankers hit in a single night, the highest number since February; the US Central Command calls the mines an invention and says 95% of ships are getting through. Between the two counts, Brent closed the week at its highest level since May.
Sisi sought authorization to act “if requested” and “only in defense” of Saudi Arabia, and parliament postponed the vote to October 26, by roll call. On the same day, Yemen counted 53 dead at a recruit camp in al-Alam, the worst Houthi blow since the war returned.
With Tehran tying the reopening of the strait to a June agreement, the damage has moved from the sea to the bill: fuel 17% dearer in Bangladesh, liquefied natural gas (LNG) expansion delayed in Qatar and Iranian revenue at a two-year high.
Why the Gulf prefers to deal with whoever decides alone — and what that does to multilateral diplomacy.
Sub-Saharan Africa's liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports are set to grow nearly 175% to 98 billion cubic meters in 2034 from 35.7 billion in 2024, according to Fitch, as buyers flee the Strait of Hormuz. The African Energy Chamber projects about US$ 40 billion a year in exploration and production investment through 2030, lifting the continent's hydrocarbon output to 12.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day. In Mozambique, TotalEnergies' US$ 20 billion LNG project, with capacity of 13.1 million tonnes per year, resumed construction in January after the end of a four-and-a-half-year force majeure and is about 45% complete.
The Cheonghae unit, currently in the Gulf of Aden, will have its area of operation extended northeast to waters south of Oman, in the Arabian Sea, officials told The Korea Herald, roughly doubling its radius to about 1,930 kilometers. The expansion adds 75 troops to the unit, bringing its strength to 395. A Defense Ministry official said operations will stay limited to open waters south of Oman and that the P-8A maritime patrol aircraft will be barred from watching Iranian territory or waters or the interior of the Strait of Hormuz. The government plans to send the revised mandate motion to the National Assembly after Cabinet endorsement next week, and South Korean law requires parliamentary consent to expand overseas missions.
Brent fell US$ 8.94, or 8.6%, to US$ 94.66 per barrel on Wednesday, after touching its lowest level since September 4, with traders pricing an end to the war against Iran, according to OilPrice. WTI dropped US$ 8.01, or 8.3%, to US$ 88.08, while Brent traded near US$ 118 on Friday. Gulf exports of crude and products averaged 17.1 million barrels per day in October, down from 18.9 million in September, roughly three-quarters of the pre-war level, according to Vortexa. The US Department of Energy announced the loan of 300,000 barrels from the Northeast home heating oil reserve to four companies, nearly a third of the stockpile, and heating oil futures fell about 7%.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said that three oil tankers struck naval mines and caught fire while navigating “unauthorized” routes through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Tasnim news agency, which cited a statement from the force’s public relations office. According to the statement, the explosions occurred in the early hours of Tuesday and the ships, abandoned near the southern shores of the strait, remained engulfed in flames that illuminated the eastern section through the night. The Guard warned that ships disregarding the rules and cooperating with the US military to cross unauthorized routes could face similar incidents. On Monday, Iran’s Navy had already announced that an oil tanker had struck a mine and caught fire in an area described as prohibited and unsafe east of the strait.
QatarEnergy signed a 20-year agreement to buy 3 million metric tons per year of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Woodside Energy’s facilities in Louisiana and, a week earlier, struck deals with Cheniere for up to 4 million tons per year through 2054, according to Reuters, in a text republished by gCaptain. Deliveries under the contracts begin in 2030 and 2031 and will make Qatar the largest buyer of US LNG. Unlike its neighbors, the small Gulf state has no viable route for exporting LNG other than the Strait of Hormuz. QatarEnergy CEO Saad al-Kaabi told Reuters he expects to sign additional supply agreements with US and other producers this year. The company declared force majeure on LNG supplies in March, after the war with Iran led to the blockade of Hormuz and attacks on its Ras Laffan facilities; the measure runs through December.
Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara arrived in Riyadh on Wednesday with a delegation including the foreign, defense, finance and industry ministers and the head of the General Intelligence Directorate, on his second visit to the kingdom in weeks, after a trip to Riyadh on October 6. He and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman witnessed the signing of agreements covering military cooperation, energy and infrastructure, and the Syrian Foreign Ministry said the defense agreement was the most notable but gave no details. The package included a cooperation agreement between the two countries’ defense ministries. Syria is in negotiations to join the Makkah defense pact, and Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani said at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain that Damascus considers “security in the Gulf as part of its own.”
Major General Esmaeil Ghaani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, said that resistance forces have formed a united front against the aggressors, namely the United States and the Zionist regime in the region. “Otherwise, you will end up fighting a war with weapons in the Strait of Hormuz while facing the opening of the Bab el-Mandeb by the Resistance,” he said. According to Ghaani, US President Donald Trump gambled on war with Iran after being misled by Netanyahu, and the outcome was the loss of America’s 250-year reputation and its defeat in the Strait of Hormuz.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delivered four trucks of essential medical supplies to hospitals in Taiz, including surgical kits to treat weapon-wounded patients, in the committee's first delivery of medical supplies to the city since September 23. The Houthis have encircled Taiz since early October and are blocking the road linking the city to Aden, the interim seat of the internationally recognized government. UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said roads are closed, water production has halved and food prices have risen by at least 50%.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said four oil tankers caught fire after hitting naval sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz. According to the semi-official Tasnim news agency, the IRGC said two of the vessels were still burning and that two additional tankers were intercepted trying to use a prohibited southern route in the strait. BBC Verify investigated the claims and has not found any evidence that four tankers were destroyed. In a separate incident, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) center said a tanker was struck by two unknown projectiles about 14 nautical miles (26 km) northeast of Limah, in Oman’s Musandam peninsula, on Tuesday evening, with no casualties reported. The IRGC also said it had shot down another US MQ-9 drone over the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil and gas shipments usually pass, has been effectively closed since the start of the Iran war, because of Iranian attacks on commercial vessels and the US naval blockade.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says that four oil tankers were destroyed after hitting naval sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz, with two still burning and two additional vessels seized for trying to use a prohibited southern route. Trump confirmed that the US struck Iran on Tuesday targeting an anti-aircraft facility, an attack US officials described as limited and defensive, in response to IRGC fire on a US aircraft; the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported projectiles in a tanker’s engine room off Limah, Oman, with no casualties, and the IRGC account could not be independently verified or linked to that incident.
The secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, said that the US response to Iran’s seven conditions was not convincing and that the Strait of Hormuz will only reopen if Washington fully meets the demands. The indirect talks center on an Iranian proposal to reopen the waterway over two days if the United States meets the seven demands, including the lifting of sanctions and an end to the US naval blockade. Four oil tankers were destroyed after striking naval mines south of the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, who also said two other vessels were halted. The statement did not identify the vessels, their owners, flags, cargoes or the exact location, and there was no immediate independent confirmation of the attacks. The Guards also said they shot down a US MQ-9 drone over the strait, the 56th by their count, a claim that could not be independently verified. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that two unidentified projectiles struck a tanker’s engine room about 14 nautical miles northeast of Oman’s coastal village of Limah, with no casualties reported. US media, citing US officials, reported that Central Command had prepared plans for strikes that could begin as early as Wednesday, after the midterm elections, when three American aircraft carriers would be in the region.
Donald Trump said in an interview with the Financial Times on Tuesday that the United States has no immediate plan to renew strikes against Iran. Trump said the U.S. military is “locked and loaded” if strikes are necessary, but noted that there may be no reason to reignite military action. On indirect negotiations with Tehran, Trump claimed — “We seem to be getting everything we want.” The interview came in the same window in which The New York Times reported, according to The Jerusalem Post, a Central Command (CENTCOM) plan to attack Iran as early as November 4, with three aircraft carriers in the region. Trump has not yet approved a large-scale attack, and diplomatic contacts between Washington and Tehran continue.
Qatar says it is working toward an interim deal between the United States and Iran to prevent renewed fighting, as diplomats try to bridge differences between the two sides. Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said on Tuesday that both countries remained committed to negotiations and were reviewing proposals from mediators, including Qatar. Al-Ansari warned that further escalation could complicate negotiations, after fresh U.S. strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island on Tuesday.
The November contract of the Dubai benchmark traded at the start of this week at a discount of about $2 per barrel to the December contract, traders and brokers told Bloomberg — the first time the Dubai curve has slipped into contango since July. Contango, a structure in which contracts dated further out are worth more than prompt ones, indicates that concern about an immediate lack of crude has eased. Physical flows had been rising for two months, with Gulf producers accelerating ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman once tankers clear Hormuz. Rising Middle East supply has weakened both Dubai and Murban prices and increased buying from Asian refiners, especially in India, which preferred additional Middle Eastern cargoes to more expensive Russian barrels with higher freight costs.
US officials acknowledged having launched strikes on the Iranian island of Qeshm, in the Strait of Hormuz, and told CBS, the BBC’s US partner, that the operation was limited and responded to fire from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) at a US aircraft. Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported several explosions on the island on Monday. According to The New York Times, US Central Command (Centcom) has a plan to strike Iran as early as Wednesday, after the midterm elections, when three aircraft carriers will be in the region. Some cabinet members want more time for sanctions and a US blockade, saying that economic pressure would eventually bring down Iran’s government; other officials see little prospect of its collapse without further strikes. Trump told Axios he was in no rush: “Either way, we will do something, but there is no rush. We have weakened them financially.” In an interview with Fox News, he said the US “may need to strike Pickaxe,” a site linked to Iran’s nuclear program.
The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis says it intercepted a drone in the Mecca region, home to Islam’s holiest city, while the Houthis reported 17 people killed in Yemen over two days, according to The Hindu. Saudi Arabia has accused the Houthis several times of targeting Mecca and Medina, accusations the group systematically rejects.
Iran offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume talks on its nuclear program if the US lifts its naval blockade on Iranian ports, waives sanctions on Iranian oil sales and observes a ceasefire, including in Lebanon. Parliament speaker and chief Iranian negotiator Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said the country had delivered a “firm and rational response” to the Americans and that it is now up to Washington to prevent war. The head of the Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, said the US response to Tehran’s demands was not convincing and that the strait will not reopen until the US addresses Iran’s conditions. Iran opened its third military training center in Tehran and announced plans to train 1 million paramilitary volunteers nationwide. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi called on Iran and the US to negotiate an agreement and warned against further military escalation in the region. US military cargo aircraft departing from Fort Bliss were tracked arriving at bases in Israel in recent days, according to FlightRadar24 data.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said two US LUCAS drones were destroyed over Bandar-e Khamir by fire from its Imam Sajjad air defense unit, which operates within the national air defense network. The previous night, the force had announced that two MQM-170 reconnaissance drones were brought down south of Qeshm Island using electronic warfare, and said the number of aircraft of that type captured had reached four.
Oman and China signed a currency swap agreement between the two countries’ central banks, along with 23 investment and strategic partnership deals and 14 cooperation documents, in Beijing during Sultan Haitham bin Tariq’s state visit. The yuan–rial swap was set at 30 billion yuan (1.5 billion Omani rials), with a five-year term, in a ceremony witnessed by the leaders of both countries. Xi Jinping told the sultan that the Gulf region, in the Middle East, should not become an arena for great-power rivalry and geopolitical conflict, according to China’s Foreign Ministry, which said special envoy Zhai Jun would visit Iran, Oman and Saudi Arabia this month.
No official English text of the Iranian seven-condition plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz has been published: the circulating list is reconstructed from statements by officials, according to the Tehran Times, based on remarks by Araghchi, Qalibaf, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei and Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi. In that reconstruction, the conditions include a full ceasefire on all fronts, including Lebanon, an end to the naval blockade, a license to export oil, the release of at least $12 billion in frozen assets, cancellation of post-June unilateral sanctions, an end to strikes and acceptance of the Iran-Oman safe navigation route.
The secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, said on Tuesday that the United States’ response to Iran’s rights and demands was not convincing and that Washington must provide a comprehensive and explicit response. In a televised speech, President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran stands ready for battle “with its finger on the trigger” but has also given the American side a “powerful and rational” response, and that the ball is now in America’s court to prevent war. Donald Trump told Fox News he is “not looking to kill lots of people” in Iran and described the action on Qeshm Island as a “minor attack” rather than a resumption of war, saying the US has Iran “totally where we want” and could “finish them off” or “be nice and let thousands of people live that would get killed in a war.”
ADNOC Gas will supply up to 1.6 million tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to TotalEnergies over five years, under an agreement announced on Tuesday by the gas unit of Abu Dhabi’s state energy firm and the French oil major. The first LNG deliveries will begin as early as this year, according to TotalEnergies. OilPrice notes that LNG flows through the Strait of Hormuz have been severely constrained for eight months and that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) remains confident that long-term global demand will stay on the upside. The Ruwais LNG project, under development in Abu Dhabi, will have 9.6 million tons per annum of capacity, most of it already committed to buyers in Asia and Europe under long-term agreements.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said the country remains in a “state of war”, with its forces mobilized and prepared for any scenario, in remarks to the Tasnim agency carried by Opera Mundi. According to him, Iran neither started nor sought the war, but will respond firmly to any new aggression. Tehran demands an end to the US naval blockade of its ports, the suspension of new economic sanctions and guarantees for selling its oil before fully restoring circulation in the Hormuz region, with the measures implemented within 48 hours, according to the same source. According to Russian agency Sputnik, the United States has no intention of escalating attacks on Iran after the strike on Qeshm Island, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. A US official cited by Reuters said the Qeshm operation was defensive in nature and hit anti-aircraft missile systems used against US forces. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf warned that Iran’s military and strategic response to any miscalculation by the enemy would be unpredictable.
Talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia are ongoing, with the aim of reaching new regional security arrangements without foreign military involvement, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Tuesday in a post on X. Araqchi also said Iran harbors no hostility toward the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, according to Reuters, in a text republished by Devdiscourse.
Iran conditions the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz on the end of the US naval blockade and on meeting Tehran's demands. “The Strait of Hormuz cannot reopen unless the blockade ends and Iran's demands are met”, an Iranian spokesperson said, according to Brasil 247.
One Indian was killed in an attack on a commercial vessel near Limah, Oman, India's foreign ministry said on Tuesday. Of the 14 Indian nationals aboard the MSV AL JUSUFI, 13 were rescued after the incident, which occurred on Monday.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang received Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tarik during a two-day state visit that began on November 1, the first by an Omani head of state to China since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1978. Li said China wants to deepen cooperation across the entire oil and gas industry chain and carry out more high-quality clean energy projects.
The US military carried out what US officials called “defensive strikes” in the Strait of Hormuz. On Qeshm Island, the blasts came in rapid succession late on Monday, and witnesses told the state-owned IRNA news agency they saw two planes flying over the island. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had downed a US MQ-9 drone over the eastern Strait of Hormuz, the 55th such drone brought down.
Qatari mediators and Iranian officials held two rounds of talks last week, and diplomatic efforts have made progress toward a framework in which Iran would cease its attacks in the Strait of Hormuz in return for the United States lifting its blockade on Iran's ports, according to two officials. On Sunday, Iranian negotiators were in Doha for a third consecutive day of talks with Qatari mediators aimed at reaching a deal to end the US-Israeli war on Iran, according to an official briefed on the discussions.
Iran has a two-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume nuclear talks with the United States, Tehran said on Monday, shortening a process originally expected to take seven days, and has conditioned the reopening on Washington accepting its demands. They include an end to military operations on all fronts, the end of the US naval blockade of Iranian ports, the unfreezing of Iranian assets held abroad and the suspension of sanctions on the country’s oil sector.
Iran's Army Navy said a tanker caught fire after colliding with a naval mine in an area it described as restricted and insecure east of the Strait of Hormuz. The vessel had turned off its navigation systems, the statement said.
Saudi Arabia's economy shrank 3.8% year on year in the third quarter, and oil activities fell 20.4% compared with the same period in 2025, according to the General Authority for Statistics, which released the figures on Sunday.
Negotiations to end the US-Iran war produced a draft deal: Iranian negotiators left Qatar on Sunday and a draft proposal began circulating for a possible follow-up meeting, according to a Reuters source cited by OilPrice. On Monday morning, Brent traded at $108.61 a barrel, down 4.25% on the day, and WTI fell 4.32% to $99.62.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said that 11 tankers violating passage rules in the Strait of Hormuz had caught fire since October 25, some of them sinking. In a post on X on Monday, the force counted the nine days since the visit of US Central Command (Centcom) commander Brad Cooper to the strait and said the tankers sank “to the depths of the sea”.
The chief executive of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), Sultan Al Jaber, said that global reserves have shrunk by nearly 1 billion barrels because of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Speaking in Abu Dhabi, he said diesel fuel reserves in some countries are at their lowest seasonal levels in 35 years and that other nations face a supply deficit of 600 billion cubic feet of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Monday that the country was open to the possibility of reopening the Strait of Hormuz within two days if the United States met Iran's demands. According to AFP, the conditions include ending the Middle East war on all fronts, unfreezing Iranian assets abroad, lifting sanctions on its oil sector and ending the US naval blockade.
In a joint statement, Beijing and Muscat urged the United States and Iran to resume dialogue and reach a “comprehensive agreement that includes the nuclear issue”. China's Foreign Ministry said the country's special envoy for Middle East affairs will visit Iran, Oman and Saudi Arabia this month, according to Reuters, in a text republished by Mehr News.
The liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier Al Mayeda, carrying cargo from Qatar to Pakistan, was struck by unidentified objects near the Strait of Hormuz, despite reports that Pakistani authorities had prior Iranian clearance for safe passage. Qatari carrier Nakilat confirmed in a statement that the attack happened on the evening of October 30, with no crew injuries and no reported environmental damage, and shipping data indicates the vessel changed course and headed back toward the Gulf.
Iranian negotiators left Doha on Sunday after three consecutive days of consultations with Qatari mediators on a deal to end the US-Israeli war on Iran, according to Reuters, in a text republished by Arab News. An official briefed on the talks told the agency on Monday that the departure was not due to difficulties in the discussions. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday it is weighing a proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days if the US meets its conditions.
Xi Jinping told Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, in Beijing, that the Gulf should not become an arena of great-power rivalry and that China wants to work with Arab nations for lasting peace, while Oman said it was open to a preferential bilateral trade and investment agreement with China, its largest trading partner, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Yamaha said it will not race in the Qatar Grand Prix next weekend over safety concerns in the Middle East, a decision that could expose the team to punishment. The team said it has not identified sufficient grounds to change its existing company-wide travel restrictions on traveling to the Middle East, with the Japanese government advising its citizens against non-essential travel to the region. MotoGP said it does not believe the decision reflects “the extensive assurances provided to all championship stakeholders”.
A tanker sailing through the Gulf was hit by two unidentified projectiles on its port side, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency, cited by Middle East Eye. In parallel, Houthi media, citing an anonymous military official, repeated threats against Saudi oil giant Aramco and aviation in the kingdom, according to the Straits Times.
A diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) said at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Manama Dialogue that the country hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough in negotiations between Iran and the US, according to Middle East Eye.
Gulf leaders met in Qatar in an effort to stave off a new escalation in the US-Iran war, according to NPR. Qatar has led intense mediation over the past 72 hours to prevent a new round of possible US attacks on Iran after Tuesday’s midterm elections, and the uncertainty has the entire Gulf region on edge.
Saudi Arabia condemned on Sunday the targeting of a Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker in the Gulf and called for urgent international action to protect shipping and global energy supplies, Arab News reported. The Al-Mayeda, a Qatar Gas Transport Company vessel, was struck on Friday night; the company said in a statement that no crew member was injured and no environmental damage was reported. In a post on X, the foreign ministry reiterated its “rejection of all violations that threaten the security and safety of maritime navigation and global energy supplies”.
The Pentagon has put the damage to US military bases from Iranian strikes at a minimum of $5 billion, according to US officials cited by the Wall Street Journal. The Journal’s investigation identified 274 damaged structures at 24 installations with a US military presence during the war’s first six months, drawing on satellite imagery, Iranian military statements and interviews with US officials, according to the Tehran Times. An Associated Press analysis found more than 115 drone and missile strikes claimed by Iran or Iranian-backed militias that damaged or destroyed structures at 26 bases and other sites with US equipment through August, according to the Times of India.
The United Arab Emirates is hoping for a “breakthrough” that could end the conflict with Iran, its Al-Ain outlet reported, according to the Jerusalem Post. In the same report, Gargash said that “the security of the Gulf states is interconnected and what affects any of them affects the UAE”, and that “trust with Iran has been shaken”.
The seven core members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) agreed in principle to keep production targets unchanged next month, three people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, in an article published by Channel NewsAsia. Sunday’s online meeting of the group — Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Algeria, Kazakhstan and Oman — comes as Gulf members have been boosting exports disrupted for months by the conflict. Most, however, are still pumping well below their targets.
The Qatar Gas Transport Company (Nakilat) confirmed that its liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier Al Mayeda was hit by unidentified objects while transiting the Arabian Gulf on Friday evening, October 30, 2026. None of the crew members were injured and there was no environmental impact, according to the company. Nakilat said the vessel is operational and that an assessment of the consequences of the incident is under way, according to TASS.
The foreign ministers of the US and Iran said that a diplomatic end to the war is still possible, with no direct US-Iran talks planned. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would decide whether talks are direct or indirect only after Washington accepted its conditions. The statements came after more than 12 hours of discussions between Iranian and Qatari envoys in Tehran on Friday, according to Reuters, in a text republished by CGTN.
Iranian negotiators met in Doha on Saturday with Qatari mediators to discuss paths out of the war in the Gulf, according to Reuters, which cited a source briefed on the negotiations. The meeting comes as diplomats try to avert new fighting after this week’s US midterm elections.
Two Iranian fishermen were injured in a drone attack attributed to the American “enemy” on two fishing boats in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday morning, China’s state-run Xinhua reported. Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB, citing a Hormozgan province official, said the US attacked two fishing boats near Qeshm Island, leaving two fishermen missing and one wounded, Reuters reported.
An oil spill from a tanker attacked near the Strait of Hormuz is spreading along the United Arab Emirates (UAE) coastline, forcing the closure of some beaches and coastal areas. UAE authorities are working to contain the spill from a supertanker, and Umm Al Quwain Municipality is intensifying efforts to limit pollution and protect marine habitats.
The United States may resume strikes on Iran the day after the midterm elections for Congress, according to the MS NOW network, cited by the Russian agency TASS. According to the sources cited by the network, the US administration informed several Persian Gulf countries that they should prepare for “a short, intense round of strikes as soon as November 4.”
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said it had captured intact a US reconnaissance and decoy drone west of the Strait of Hormuz, after taking control of the drone’s guidance and control systems, according to the Iranian agency IRNA. According to the Guard’s statement, the drone’s mission was to identify Iranian air defense systems along the Persian Gulf coast and around the Strait of Hormuz, and analysis of the recovered data indicated it had taken off from the coast of a southern Persian Gulf country.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei condemned Canada and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for reiterating territorial claims over Abu Musa, the Greater Tunb and the Lesser Tunb, according to the Tehran Times. He called the UAE’s claims “brazen and interventionist” and criticised Canada for endorsing them in a joint statement. Baqaei said “the islands of Abu Musa, the Greater Tunb and the Lesser Tunb are inseparable and eternal parts of Iran’s territorial domain” and that the repetition of “baseless and unfounded” claims will not change “the established geographical, historical and legal realities.”
The British maritime agency UKMTO (United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations) said in a warning issued on Thursday that it had received a report from a company security officer that a tanker was hit by an unknown projectile while completing an outbound transit of the Strait of Hormuz, according to Anadolu. The agency did not identify the weapon, establish who fired it or attribute responsibility to Iran, according to Gulf News.
Iran’s Army Navy said it destroyed an enemy unmanned surface vessel (USV) in the eastern Strait of Hormuz on Friday, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA). The agency said two oil tankers that were transiting prohibited areas with their tracking systems turned off suffered damage and caught fire after hitting sea mines, disregarding warnings and regulations.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said on Friday that two oil tankers were involved in an incident and were stopped in waters south of the Strait of Hormuz after ignoring radio warnings from Iran, according to the Jerusalem Post. Russia's TASS news agency also reported the incident and the stoppage of the two vessels.
A tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz was hit by two limpet mines fixed by a small boat and suffered a fire in its engine room, the first successful use of such explosives in the waterway since the start of the United States (US) war with Iran in February, according to Reuters, in a text republished by gCaptain. The British naval agency United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said the crew is safe, with no environmental impact, the fire extinguished and the vessel heading to its next port, according to OilPrice. The navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said two tankers attempting unauthorized routes in the strait encountered incidents and were stopped in the waterway's southern waters, according to Mehr News. Brent crude reached US$117 a barrel in Asian trade amid fears of escalation after the US midterm elections on November 3, according to OilPrice.
Gulf states will have to reconfigure their trillion-dollar defenses given the damage to their economies and the questionable value of US bases in the face of Iranian attack, according to a study by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) reported by the Guardian. The report cites 4,670 Iranian one-way attack drones and more than 1,400 Iranian ballistic missiles against 12 regional states in the weeks before the April 8 ceasefire, and an estimate cited in the study puts damage to energy infrastructure at as much as US$58 billion.
The British maritime agency United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) received a report of a tanker on fire 25 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, Oman, in the Strait of Hormuz, with the cause unknown at the time of the report — a later verified report confirmed the crew safe, with no environmental impact and the vessel proceeding to its next port, after it was approached on the port side by a small boat that attached two explosive devices to the hull above the waterline. A ship on fire was reported in the Strait, according to Arab News, citing the UKMTO, without details of the cause or any casualties.
Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree said six attacks hit vital commercial and military infrastructure from Saudi Arabia's east coast to its west coast, reaching Riyadh and the southern region of Najran, in a statement posted on X, according to Al Jazeera. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted and destroyed a drone launched by the Houthis in the Mecca region, according to the Times of Israel. The Houthis deny targeting Mecca and Medina and have rejected previous coalition accusations that they launched drones towards the two holy cities of Islam, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The Houthis said Thursday they had attacked Saudi Arabia's Ras Tanura refinery, the largest in the kingdom; the Rabigh refinery; an Aramco facility in Abqaiq; and King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, according to the Jerusalem Post. There was no immediate confirmation from Saudi authorities. The Saudi-led coalition said it had intercepted two ballistic missiles launched toward the capital, after AFP correspondents heard at least eight explosions in Riyadh, and the Houthi-run health ministry reported 12 killed and three critically injured in attacks it attributes to Saudi Arabia on residential areas in western Yemen.
ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods and Chevron upstream president Clay Neff have canceled plans to attend the United Arab Emirates' biggest oil show next week over security concerns, according to sources cited by Reuters and reported by OilPrice.
Shrapnel falling after the interception of two missiles wounded one Saudi citizen, Saudi Arabia's Civil Defense Authority said, according to Middle East Eye.
QatarEnergy is buying long-term supplies of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States and other suppliers as part of a strategy to build a trading and arbitrage hedge that would generate revenue if exports through the Strait of Hormuz are disrupted, according to Reuters. “In a scenario where you have a closure of the strait, which is the true contingency that we're looking to have, you'd immediately see a spike in the gas price and you'll be able to generate revenue for QatarEnergy that otherwise wouldn't be generated,” CEO Saad al-Kaabi said.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said on Wednesday (28/10) that any military aggression instigated by Israel in the Persian Gulf region could have devastating consequences.
US officials told Middle East countries and regional allies to be prepared for potential renewed military action against Iran after the November 3 midterm elections — as well as for the possibility that Iran will attempt to retaliate against them, according to two diplomats briefed on the matter who spoke to the AP. Donald Trump has not made a final decision on whether to carry out new strikes, but has repeatedly said he is weighing ordering new military action once the elections are over. The allies were also urged to take precautionary measures in anticipation that Iran's response will include retaliatory strikes on energy facilities and other crucial infrastructure.
UBS raised its Brent forecast to 110 dollars a barrel by the end of 2026, its second upward revision this month, from 100 dollars, according to OilPrice. The bank says Gulf crude and condensate loadings remain below prewar levels.
The United States warned several Gulf Arab countries to be prepared for a short, intense military offensive against Iran after the November 3 midterm elections, according to The Wall Street Journal, cited by Middle East Eye. US forces have been restocking their munitions in the region, and bomber aircraft and jet fighters are preparing for attacks, officials told the newspaper.
The United States advised vessels to refrain from making non-essential transits through the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz to avoid delays, according to Sputnik. The command recommended that crews be prepared to change course or stop at the direction of US forces and to have the necessary documents ready for inspection. The document said neutral vessels, carrying neutral cargo or in ballast, between neutral ports in the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz may be subject to questioning, visit, and search to confirm their intentions regarding the blockade.
Iran's economic planners are weighing a scenario of $130 a barrel in the budget for the next Iranian year, which starts in March 2027, according to Iranian media cited by OilPrice. As of early October, the US blockade in the Gulf of Oman had already stranded at least 50 Iranian tankers laden with oil inside the Persian Gulf near Iran's coastline, the same report said.
The United States has told several Gulf Arab countries to be prepared for a short, intense military campaign after the midterm elections, according to people briefed on the conversations, the Hindustan Times reported. The newspaper also cited new signs that the American and Israeli militaries are preparing a potential wave of strikes to muscle Tehran to the negotiating table.
Saudi Arabia reportedly offered a $1 billion financial package to the Houthis in an Iran-brokered deal to secure a ceasefire and halt attacks on the kingdom, according to the Hindustan Times, citing a report. The proposal was reportedly discussed during a surprise visit by Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman to Tehran, where Iran offered to act as a regional diplomatic mediator, according to NDTV.
Qatar and Iran discussed the Middle East war and the blockaded Strait of Hormuz at a meeting in Moscow, the emir's office said. Iran's navy said an oil tanker caught fire after striking naval mines east of the Strait of Hormuz, after the vessel entered a prohibited area with its tracking systems switched off.
Houthi official Mohammed Ali al-Houthi said Tuesday that the Egyptian parliament's decision to authorize military support for Saudi Arabia to defend against the group's attacks amounted to a declaration of war, according to Channel News Asia. The comment was part of a statement reacting to a Monday visit to Tehran by the Saudi defense minister, alongside Pakistan's army chief and Türkiye's intelligence chief, in a bid to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East war.
The Houthis said on Tuesday they had struck Saudi Arabia’s Ras Tanura refinery, the kingdom’s largest, with a ballistic missile, while Bloomberg reported, citing a source familiar with the matter, that the kingdom contained a fire near the Ras Tanura terminal earlier that day, according to the Middle East Eye. The group’s military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said the attack caused “massive fires”, and a Houthi official said the Egyptian parliament’s authorization of defensive military support for Saudi Arabia amounted to a declaration of war. The Houthis also said they had attacked Saudi Arabia’s defence ministry in Riyadh, with no confirmation from Saudi Arabia, according to the Hindustan Times, which cited Reuters.
Qatar’s emir met with Iran’s president to review the current state of relations between Tehran and Doha, according to Mehr News. The two sides stressed the importance of expanding political and economic relations and of using existing capacities to raise the level of bilateral cooperation, the agency reported.
Saudi Arabia, Iran, Turkiye and Pakistan agreed to continue talks for regional peace and security, in a joint statement issued late on Monday, according to Al Jazeera — Riyadh sent Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman, Pakistan sent Army chief Asim Munir and Turkiye sent intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin.
Senior officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are set to meet their Iranian counterparts in Tehran on Monday to discuss regional coordination, the Jerusalem Post reported. Saudi Arabia will be represented by Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, and Pakistan by army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, according to Reuters. It will be the first high-level contact between Iran and all members of the three-nation bloc since Saudi Arabia came under escalating attacks, the Middle East Eye reported.
Saudi Civil Defence said that shrapnel from two intercepted ballistic missiles, suspected to have been fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, fell in Jeddah, Taif, Rabigh and Wadi Al-Mughammas in Mecca province, according to Al Jazeera.
The Saudi-led coalition intercepted and destroyed a second drone in the Riyadh region, spokesman Major-General Turki al-Maliki said in a post on X. The coalition also said it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis towards Riyadh.
The Houthis said they targeted three Saudi airports, including the international airport in Riyadh, as well as energy installations, a pipeline and an air base over the past 24 hours, in a new round of attacks on Saudi Arabia on Saturday, according to Le Monde. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted two missiles targeting Taif and Yanbu on Saturday morning, while Saudi civil defence responded to debris in the Mecca and Medina regions. The Houthi broadcaster Al-Masirah said strikes by the kingdom in Yemen killed four people at a house in Sanaa, eight at a residential building for cement factory workers and five from the same family outside Hodeida.
Iran said on Saturday that “we will under no circumstances and at no time allow rusty U.S. military vessels to enter the Persian Gulf” and that, if attacked, it “will achieve absolute victory in this apocalyptic war”, according to The Hindu. The apocalyptic war remark was attributed to state-run Press TV. The comments by Iranian military officers came after US and Israeli media reported that both countries have drawn up plans to resume strikes against the Islamic Republic.
Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport said on Saturday that flights would resume on Sunday, October 25, after a two-week closure caused by Houthi attacks, according to Middle East Eye. Terminal 1 will be designated for domestic flights and Terminal 2 for international flights operated by national carriers. The closure followed a missile attack that killed 13 people and wounded more than 300 on October 10, according to Arab News.
Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group carried out seven operations with ballistic missiles and drones, according to TASS, and that the targets included King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, an Aramco facility in Yanbu, the Rabigh oil refinery, crude oil pumping stations and the East-West Pipeline, according to France 24. The Saudi-led coalition said it destroyed two ballistic missiles fired towards Yanbu and Taif on Saturday. There was no immediate confirmation from Saudi authorities on the Houthi reports, and it was not immediately clear whether the attacks had hit their targets or been intercepted.
The Houthis said on Saturday they attacked Aden, the interim seat of the Saudi-backed government, with military spokesman Yahya Saree saying the targets were what he called “Saudi enemy” concentrations at the Al-Nasr camp and the city’s naval base. Earlier, the Saudi-led coalition said it had intercepted two missiles targeting Taif and Yanbu in the kingdom’s west. According to the Houthis, a separate strike on a residential building for cement factory workers in the Sanaa governorate killed six women and one child and wounded three other people. The US updated travel advisories for the Gulf and the wider Middle East, citing what it described as the threat of “regional aggression” by Iran-aligned Houthis.
The United Arab Emirates closed some beaches after detecting an oil spill from a tanker in the Persian Gulf, according to Bloomberg. The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment said in a statement that authorities detected “a tanker oil spill affecting Umm Al Quwain’s beaches”, an emirate north of Dubai, according to Euronews.
The Saudi-led coalition said it destroyed two ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis towards Taif and Yanbu on Saturday, according to Middle East Eye. Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defense briefly issued alerts warning of potential danger in Taif, Yanbu, the holy city of Mecca and Jeddah, according to the same report.
Iran's armed forces chief of staff and commander of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, General Abdollahi, said the country will not allow “under any circumstances” rusting US warships to re-enter the Persian Gulf, according to the Middle East Eye. In remarks carried by Press TV, Abdollahi said Iran's armed forces had rendered the US Navy ineffective, to the point that it is no longer capable of approaching the waters around the Persian Gulf or Iran's territorial waters.
Saudi Arabia's air defenses intercepted and destroyed a drone in the country's eastern region, a spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition said in a post on X, according to the Middle East Eye.
Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia condemned the Houthi attacks on the kingdom, including strikes against civilians, infrastructure and commercial vessels in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, according to TASS. The four countries called on the Houthis to immediately cease all military actions, threats and attacks and return to the political process. They also said the Israeli occupation is the main source of instability in the region and beyond.
The United States is accelerating the evacuation of diplomats and their families from its missions across the Middle East amid concerns over a possible regional escalation and renewed strikes on Iran, according to the Jerusalem Post. The State Department ordered nonessential personnel and their families to leave Saudi Arabia and quietly reduced staffing levels at US embassies in Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon.
Pakistan has completed the ratification processes for the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, Foreign Office spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan told a news conference, according to TRT World. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have already completed their ratification processes, while Türkiye is undertaking the requisite procedures “in accordance with its domestic legal framework,” he said.
Tehran has drawn up detailed plans to target undersea communications cables in the Gulf if the United States and Israel attack Iran again, two senior Iranian security officials told Reuters, according to The Hindu. One of them said Iran would aim to prevent repairs after any attacks, to prolong disruptions to communications, including internet connections.
US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack said a strike on Iran this weekend is possible. “Could there be a strike this weekend? Absolutely,” he said in an interview with Mario Nawfal’s podcast, according to the Times of Israel. The envoy, who does not have a direct role on Iran, said the consequence would not be regime change: “If you keep threatening the world, our allies, the Gulf, there will be a consequence. The consequence won’t be regime change.” President Donald Trump said that if that is the case he knows nothing about it: “Well, if that’s the case, I don’t know anything about it,” he said, according to TASS. In Istanbul, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said everyone agrees a new attack on Iran would expand the war in the region: “A military intervention on Iran is not in any way a solution. Nobody approves this at the moment,” he told a press conference, according to the Jerusalem Post. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said after Friday’s meetings that renewed escalation between Iran and the United States would only have losers and raise oil prices.
Brent crude futures rose US$ 4.35, or 4%, to close at US$ 113.17 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose US$ 2.32, or 2.4%, to US$ 99.47. Oil closed 4% higher on Thursday, hitting a five-month high, after Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia fuelled concerns about new supply disruptions from the key exporting region. Saudi Aramco instructed employees to evacuate its headquarters in Dhahran, in the Persian Gulf, as fighting intensified, Reuters reported, in a text republished by Brasil 247.
All beaches and coastal areas in Umm Al Quwain, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), have been temporarily closed after an oil spill from a tanker, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment confirmed. The ministry said its monitoring system detected the spill, after residents in Sharjah, Ajman and Umm Al Quwain reported unpleasant odours.
Middle Eastern media outlets published this week the text of the Mecca Defense Pact signed by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan on August 7, 2026, according to The Jerusalem Post. The agreement establishes a trilateral defense concept under which an armed attack against one member is considered an attack against all three. It provides for a permanent secretariat, rotating leadership, regular ministerial meetings and the admission of new members, which, in the newspaper’s assessment, suggests something more ambitious than a typical defense-cooperation memorandum.
Saudi Arabia struck an Indian boat carrying 14 Indian nationals near Zuqar Island off western Yemen, and Yemeni forces rescued those aboard, according to Yemeni armed forces spokesman Yahya Saree, in a statement cited by Mehr News. Saree posted the information on social media.
French President Emmanuel Macron began on Monday, October 19, a Gulf tour aimed at securing oil and diesel supplies in an effort to bring down prices, after a weekend of violent protests sparked by soaring living costs, according to Le Monde. Macron acknowledged security and intelligence failures but refused his interior minister’s resignation, after more than 2,500 people were arrested in some of France’s worst violence in years, with town halls and shops looted and set on fire, according to RFI.
The death toll from the attack on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam has risen to two, a Saudi citizen and an Indian resident, the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) said. Eight people were injured, a figure unchanged from the first toll released on October 21. GACA said airport operations resumed and air traffic returned to normal. The Saudi government has not confirmed who carried out the attack, according to AeroTime.
Brent was trading at US$ 111.10 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) at US$ 98.98, both up by around 2% from Wednesday, after the Yemeni Houthis struck an oil field in Saudi Arabia and another international airport, according to OilPrice. Gulf countries exported 24.6 million barrels per day in the week ending 18 October, above the pre-war 23.3 million, according to Kpler data, in a Middle East Eye report.
The Navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said that four vessels conducting illegal oil transfers in the northern Persian Gulf were hit simultaneously and caught fire, according to Mehr News.
The departure order for non-emergency staff and family members applies only to Saudi Arabia, the State Department spokesperson said, according to the Korea Herald, amid Houthi attacks on civilian targets. The account that missions in other Gulf states would also order family members to leave, given by four officials to Reuters, was not confirmed by the spokesperson; the attacks on a civilian airport in Dammam killed at least one person and injured eight, and another drone attack on an oil field killed two.
The State Department is preparing to order some employees and their family members to leave American embassies in the Gulf region, according to Reuters, in a report republished by G1. Two officials told the agency that the measure responds to the possibility of renewed conflict in the region, with concern focused on attacks by Yemen's Houthis, who are aligned with Iran.
French President Emmanuel Macron made a surprise “solidarity” visit to Riyadh and became the first Western leader to land in Saudi Arabia since the Houthis intensified their attacks this month, Al Jazeera reported. The trip comes as Saudi Arabia agreed to supply extra diesel to France “for as many months as necessary”, the Elysee Palace told Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Wednesday.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Egypt’s military support for Saudi Arabia would be limited to defending the kingdom’s territory and borders and would not include an attack on Yemen, the presidency said on Wednesday, according to the Jerusalem Post. His comments came as Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and intelligence chief Hassan Rashad met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi state news agency SPA reported.
The Houthis said eight fishermen were killed in a series of strikes overnight, and the Sanaa-based health ministry said Saudi Arabia targeted boats off the coast of Taiz governorate. On Wednesday, Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree said the group fired a ballistic missile at the coalition's military operation room at the Badr Camp in Aden. According to Xinhua, Saudi forces carried out 93 air and missile strikes across eight Yemeni provinces over the past 24 hours.
Turkey will submit to parliament a mandate allowing military personnel to be deployed to Saudi Arabia under its joint defense pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, an agreement signed in August in Mecca and submitted to parliament for ratification on Tuesday, according to the Jerusalem Post. According to the newspaper, no Turkish troops deployed to other countries under the pact would take part in offensive operations, and technical personnel and experts would be sent initially to help with air defenses.
Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and French President Emmanuel Macron discussed ways to strengthen economic, investment and defence cooperation at Lusail Palace in Doha, according to TRT World. The French tour of the Gulf from October 19 to 21 aims, according to the French presidency, to consolidate strategic and economic partnerships with Gulf states and to support multilateral initiatives to restore regional stability and safeguard freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Turkish government submitted the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement to parliament on October 20, binding Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan to mutual defense indefinitely, according to The Cradle. The text treats aggression from abroad against one member as aggression against all and obliges the others to immediately assist the attacked party, with the scale of support still to be defined, including military means.
Egypt’s Parliament postponed to October 26 a vote on authorising the armed forces to support Saudi Arabia, the House of Representatives said on Monday, according to Al Jazeera. Parliament has been tasked with authorising President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to approve any request from Saudi Arabia for defence assistance.
The UK will provide additional defensive military support to Saudi Arabia given escalating Houthi attacks in the region, according to the UK Ministry of Defence. Royal Air Force (RAF) Typhoon fighter jets will fly defensive counter air missions to support the protection of Saudi cities and critical national infrastructure against aerial attack, and the ministry says the warplanes will operate in a defensive role and will not be used to attack the Yemeni group, according to Al Jazeera.
French President Emmanuel Macron has secured the delivery of an additional 200,000 tonnes of diesel per month from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain during a tour of the Gulf, France 24 reported. With the addition of deliveries from Saudi Arabia, France has commitments for 295,000 tonnes per month, just over 10 percent of its consumption, the French presidency added.
Asian spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices topped $30 per million British thermal units for the first time since December 2022, according to OilPrice, citing Bloomberg — the jump follows a report of a strike on an LNG tanker in the Gulf of Aden, off the Yemeni coast, and European storage is 74% full this week, against a five-year seasonal average of around 89%, according to the same outlet.
Brent topped 110 per barrel again, with WTI back over 100 — trading at 109.68, with WTI at 98.55, its highest in five months — while the daily flow of oil out of the Persian Gulf fell to 8.5 million barrels, from more than 20 million barrels two weeks ago, according to Kpler, according to OilPrice.
A Houthi spokesperson said the group’s forces carried out six military operations over the past 48 hours targeting various sites in Saudi Arabia, with ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones, according to Middle East Eye.
Before the war with Iran, 24 percent of the world’s sulfur supply passed through the Strait of Hormuz, and the author of the OilPrice piece says he can find no reliable information on whether the material is still being shipped, suspecting the volume is near zero. Sulfur from the Middle East went from about $500 a tonne at the start of the conflict to more than $800, and some customers paid more than $1,000 for Canadian sulfur in June, according to OilPrice.
Saudi Arabia has decided to postpone its flagship investment conference until next year, organizers confirmed in a statement on Monday, following deadly attacks that rocked the kingdom in recent weeks, according to Reuters, in a text republished by the Jerusalem Post. The attacks struck military, energy and civilian infrastructure across the country, including state oil company Aramco’s headquarters and Riyadh’s international airport, where strikes killed at least 18 people.
A Pakistan Army general said the country is providing “whatever support is needed” to protect Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and holy sites, amid escalating attacks by Yemen’s Houthis on the Gulf country. Lieutenant General Chaudhry told the digital newspaper Independent Arabia in an interview published on Sunday (18) that such support “is being provided and will be provided”, without disclosing the nature or extent of the assistance.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi blamed the United States and Israel for insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz, saying that “the war imposed by the United States and the Zionist regime (Israel), combined with the economic blockade, constitutes the principal source of insecurity in our region”, at a press conference in Tehran on Monday alongside Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. According to TRT World, Lavrov is on his first visit to Iran since the outbreak of the Middle East war, and Moscow is seeking to play a mediating role.
Egypt’s parliament postponed to October 26 a vote on authorizing potential military support to help defend Saudi Arabia, as regional security tensions rise, according to TRT World. The one-week postponement leaves the decision pending as lawmakers prepare to resume deliberations later this month.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived in Tehran on 19 October to discuss de-escalation steps in the Persian Gulf region with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, according to Russian outlet TASS, in a report by The Cradle. The visit coincides with mounting US threats against Iran and a vow by the Islamic Republic to retaliate much more forcefully to any new attack, according to the same publication.
French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Kuwait on Monday, where he was welcomed by Emir Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, TRT World reported. The four-country tour seeks additional oil and diesel and will take him to the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar by Wednesday; according to the broadcaster, the trip is also meant to improve the safety of energy shipping routes disrupted by the war between the United States and Iran.
The Ministerial Council of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), at its 108th session in Manama, Bahrain, condemned retaliatory attacks by the Yemeni army against Saudi positions and attributed missile and drone attacks against Council members and Jordan to Iran, according to Mehr News.
Egypt’s presidency said the country is ready to give Saudi Arabia all the support it needs to defend its security and stability, the Korea Herald reported. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi requested an urgent parliament session to authorize the military, one of the Arab world’s largest, to help defend its Gulf ally if the kingdom requests support. The move comes as Yemen’s Houthis step up their attacks on the kingdom.
The United States issued security alerts dated October 18 covering 12 locations in the Middle East, among them Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain, Oman, Iran, Qatar, Iraq, Lebanon, Yemen and Israel/Jerusalem, urging Americans in the region to exercise heightened vigilance, monitor airline operations and prepare for flight cancellations, airspace closures and sudden changes to travel plans. The notices cite the potential for hostilities to escalate beyond their immediate area and warn that Iran and groups supportive of Tehran may target US interests overseas. The US Embassy in the United Arab Emirates urged citizens in the Middle East to exercise heightened vigilance amid escalations in the region, Middle East Eye reported. The alerts do not by themselves confirm that airports have closed or that flights have been canceled.
The Kingdom Centre tower in Riyadh ordered mandatory remote work for all office employees, “effective immediately and until further notice”, the building’s management said. The Saudi-led coalition said two pilots died when an AH-6i reconnaissance helicopter crashed in Najran Region due to a technical malfunction, coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said — a version the Houthis dispute: spokesman Yahya Saree said late on Saturday that the group had downed an Apache helicopter in the same area.
A Yemeni military source called on employees and citizens to stay away from Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities and advised Aramco shareholders to sell their shares before it is too late, according to Mehr News. The Houthis had already warned Aramco shareholders of what they described as potential financial losses in the coming days, according to al-Masirah, cited by Xinhua.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a ministerial meeting that Russia supports the peace efforts of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), aimed at preventing a full-scale war in the Middle East, according to TASS.
The Saudi-led coalition said an AH-6i reconnaissance helicopter crashed in Najran, in Saudi Arabia, due to a technical malfunction, killing two officers. The coalition also said it intercepted two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthis toward Khamis Mushait and four drones over several hours in the Riyadh region, the Eastern Province and southern Saudi Arabia.
US Vice President JD Vance said Washington was focused on securing a “long-term” and “verifiable commitment” from Iran not to rebuild its nuclear program, while claiming the US had “in some ways decisively won” the war against Iran and destroyed its nuclear program, according to Middle East Eye. Vance blamed Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and attacks on tankers for driving up prices, saying, “We’ve never had a situation like this” in which one country was “trying to completely choke off world energy supply”.
A Saudi AH-6i helicopter crashed in the Najran region of Saudi Arabia due to a technical malfunction, killing its two crew members, Brigadier General Turki al-Maliki, spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, said. Yemen’s armed forces said they downed an armed Karayel reconnaissance drone over Hajjah province, the fourth of its kind in recent tensions, spokesman Yahya Saree said.
The Gulf Cooperation Council and the European Union announced on Thursday (October 15) that their summit scheduled for October 24 in Riyadh had been pushed to a later date, according to The Hindu; a statement by the council cited recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia for the decision.
The United Arab Emirates agreed to resume funding some Yemeni forces fighting Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in exchange for Saudi air support, according to the Guardian. The southern Yemeni forces that will receive payments again are considered among the most effective in the fragmented anti-Houthi camp, according to the Guardian, in a text republished by Opera Mundi.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said his country is prepared to take any measures requested by Saudi Arabia to defend the kingdom’s security and sovereignty, according to the state-run Nile TV, in a Xinhua report. Sisi said the measure requires parliamentary approval and called on parliament to convene an emergency session to authorize action should it be asked to intervene: “I am not talking about waging war against anyone; I am speaking strictly in terms of defense”.
The naval force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) declared once again that “the Strait of Hormuz is closed, and the passage of ships of various nationalities through the strait is prohibited”, according to the official state IRNA news agency. An oil tanker caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz after hitting a mine, according to the Revolutionary Guards. At least two other tankers were reported hit off Saudi Arabia’s coast since yesterday, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).
Kuwait Airways canceled two flights in and out of Riyadh, citing the closure of the airport and the “security situation” there, the airline said on Saturday (October 10, 2026).
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operation (UKMTO) said an oil tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile 68 nautical miles northeast of Jubail, in Saudi Arabia, according to Mehr News. All crew members were reported safe and evacuated, with no environmental impact observed following the incident, UKMTO said on X.
Pakistan’s finance minister, Muhammad Aurangzeb, told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that the country has withstood the initial shock from the war against Iran but said continued attacks on Gulf energy infrastructure would delay a return to economic normalcy. In an interview on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)–World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, he said Pakistan had procured enough energy supplies to last through November 2026.
US President Donald Trump said the US Navy is carrying out an “effective” blockade that has stopped all Iranian ships from crossing the Strait of Hormuz, according to Al Jazeera.
The majority of vessels attacked in the Strait of Hormuz do not report the incidents to UKMTO (United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations), which prevents the agency from establishing the true number of attacks, according to the Middle East Eye. Combined inbound and outbound transits remain about 70 percent below pre-war levels, according to the same outlet. In the week ending October 14, UKMTO recorded 254 combined transits, 129 inbound and 125 outbound, down from 275 the previous week, according to the World Ports Organization.
Two missiles struck close to the airport in Aden, the southern Yemeni city that serves as the temporary base of the internationally recognised government, according to police sources cited by Middle East Eye. Government forces said they had neutralised more than 430 Houthi fighters over the past 24 hours.
Iranian Army spokesperson Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia said on Friday that the country has new operational plans underway that will force US naval forces to withdraw farther from Iran’s coastline in the coming days, according to West Asia News Agency (WANA).
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday that his department “will not relent until the Iranian regime’s coffers are empty”, after it announced fresh sanctions on Iran-related individuals and entities, according to Middle East Eye.
Iran’s military said on Thursday that an oil tanker had caught fire in the Gulf of Oman as it was attempting to pass through an area deemed prohibited, according to Iranian state TV, in a text republished by Free Malaysia Today.
The European Union (EU) and Gulf states agreed to postpone their summit that was due to be held in Saudi Arabia on October 24, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters, in a text published by The Jerusalem Post. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said on arrival at a summit of EU leaders in Brussels that the meeting in Riyadh would be postponed, maybe for security reasons. On Tuesday, the Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted three missiles and two drones fired by Houthis toward Riyadh and Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran.
A commander of the Basij’s Afzal Sisters female unit was killed in an attack on Wednesday in Mehrestan, a border county in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchestan province, Iranian state media reported, according to The Jerusalem Post. The victim, identified as Afsaneh Aqila, was reportedly assassinated outside her home in front of her children. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)-affiliated Tasnim News Agency alleged the gunmen had links to Israel and the United States, without identifying the group responsible or providing evidence.
Houthi attacks on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on October 8, 10, and 11 killed at least 16 people, according to The Jerusalem Post, citing Media Line. The deadliest strike, on October 10, killed 12 people and injured 309 others. On October 13, another attack damaged an administrative building at Saudi Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran.
Yemen’s armed forces spokesman Yahya Saree rejected on Thursday that any attack was launched toward Medina, calling the Saudi claim a big and blatant lie, according to the Mehr News Agency. In a statement carried by Al-Masirah, Saree said the Yemeni armed forces did not carry out any targeting operations toward Saudi territory on Thursday.
Since October 6, Houthi strikes against Saudi Arabia have killed at least 20 people and injured almost 400, according to Middle East Eye. The Houthis vowed more attacks after hitting Aramco’s headquarters, facilities in Dhahran, a refinery in Riyadh and Riyadh’s airport over the past week.
International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned that Houthi strikes on Saudi infrastructure could affect the global economy and cited the near closure of Hormuz and disruptions in the Red Sea, which sharply curtailed oil and gas exports and reduced production capacity, according to OilPrice.
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen intercepted and destroyed an incoming drone over Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, according to spokesperson Major General Turki al-Maliki, in an X post cited by Middle East Eye; the report came on the same day the Houthis claimed they targeted a Saudi Eurofighter Typhoon over Saada, according to Middle East Eye.
The United States military destroyed an Iranian-affiliated dhow in the Gulf of Oman on Wednesday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced. According to CENTCOM, the vessel was targeted after being observed conducting surveillance and targeting US Navy ships. The crew was safely removed before the dhow was destroyed, and repatriation efforts are ongoing, CENTCOM said.
Iranian leaders consider a new US strike inevitable and focus the discussion on when it will happen, according to regional diplomats quoted by the Jerusalem Post. Iranian army spokesman Mohammad Akrami-Nia said the US objective in waging an illegal war is to destroy Iranian Islamic civilization. A spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Iran is prepared to respond to any further aggression with greater force than in the past and that the consequences for the US will be far more painful.
A senior UN official warned that a failure by the US and Iran to quickly approve a UN plan for shipping fertilizer through the Strait of Hormuz could plunge parts of Asia and Africa into a food security crisis, according to Reuters, in a text published by The Cradle. “It’s absolutely crucial to get the deal in the next few weeks. Otherwise, we will miss the planting season,” UN Under-Secretary-General Jorge Moreira da Silva told Reuters in Bangkok. According to the UN analysis he cited, daily traffic through the strait has collapsed from around 130 ships before the war to just five last week, and fertilizer prices have jumped 25 to 30 percent since late February.
A second vessel sank near the Strait of Hormuz within less than 24 hours. The bulk carrier Cape Dao, flagged by Antigua and Barbuda, was struck by a projectile on 23 September and sank, according to data from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) released on Wednesday. The loss was reported less than 24 hours after the sinking of the Singapore-flagged GFS Pride, which was struck by a projectile in a separate incident, maritime security sources said.
The Saudi-led coalition says it intercepted and destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile launched towards Riyadh, and the Saudi Ministry of Energy confirmed that the administrative building belonging to Aramco in Dhahran was hit, according to Al Jazeera. Houthi attacks on Riyadh’s King Khalid international airport over the weekend killed 14 people and wounded more than 300 others. The coalition also carried out a strike on a fuel depot near Sanaa, the Houthi-controlled capital, according to its spokesperson, cited by the BBC.
United States (US) President Donald Trump accused Yemenʼs Houthis of deliberately trying to drive up oil prices, probably ahead of the US elections, and said the group had emerged again probably at the behest of Iran and was hitting Saudi Arabia in a very nasty way, according to the Middle East Eye.
The United States Central Command (Centcom) rejected the Iranian claim of control over the Strait of Hormuz, said American forces and regional partners clearly control the strait – with more than 19 million barrels of crude oil shipped with American assistance – and said the naval commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has no navy, according to the Middle East Eye.
An administrative Aramco building in Dhahran was struck on Tuesday evening, causing a limited fire with no casualties or fatalities, while debris from two intercepted Houthi cruise missiles wounded four people – two women, a man and a child – and damaged 15 homes in the capital, according to the South China Morning Post.
Debris from two intercepted Houthi missiles injured four people in Riyadh, Saudi civil defence said on Wednesday. The injured are two women, a man and a child, and 15 homes were damaged, civil defence said, adding that the missiles had been launched by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis. The Saudi-led military coalition said it intercepted and destroyed a cruise missile in Al-Kharj Governorate, according to Middle East Eye, citing Reuters.
The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted missiles fired by the Houthis towards Aramco’s headquarters in Dhahran and destroyed three cruise missiles and two drones on Tuesday in Riyadh and the country’s southern region, according to the coalition. Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the Houthis are stepping up attacks on infrastructure in Saudi Arabia in a bid to increase energy prices ahead of the US midterm elections and repeated his threat that the US could step up military attacks across the Middle East after the November elections, according to Al Jazeera.
A tanker was struck by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said, a division of the Royal Navy, according to a source verified by the agency. UKMTO also recorded four more previously-unreported attacks on ships in the same strait on Sunday.
Saudi Arabia has launched a series of strikes on a strategic oil depot on the outskirts of Sana’a, in a fresh escalation of the conflict between Riyadh and the Iran-backed Houthi forces, according to The Guardian. A Saudi strike on an oil company in Ras Issa near Hodeidah killed two people and wounded two others, according to the health ministry affiliated with the Houthis.
Suspected cholera cases in Yemen tripled in three weeks, from 217 to 647 weekly cases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), in an Al Jazeera report. The country has reported 8,034 suspected cases and 27 deaths this year, with a quarter of the cases in the last four weeks.
Iran summoned the British ambassador to Tehran over “accusations” linking the country to a suspected plot against Fairford air base in the United Kingdom, Iran’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday, according to the Middle East Eye. The ministry demanded that the British government provide “as soon as possible” the documents and evidence supporting its accusations and said that otherwise the Islamic Republic of Iran “will seriously reconsider its bilateral relations.”
King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh remains closed, and a notice to airmen (Notam) indicates the closure will last until at least October 17. Weekend strikes on the airport killed at least 14 people and injured about 320, according to Middle East Eye. Saudi Arabia's cabinet, chaired by Mohammed bin Salman, said Yemen's Houthis would face “consequences” for the attacks, according to Saudi state media. The coalition told civilians to evacuate the Yemeni Oil Company's al-Sabaha central station in Sanaa before a military operation.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarie said Aramco facilities are legitimate targets and called on employees and civilians to evacuate the sites, according to The Jerusalem Post. The French embassy in Riyadh told French nationals to avoid the airports in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam and to avoid travelling to those cities unless necessary, according to France 24. The Saudi-led coalition urged civilians to evacuate the Yemen Oil Company’s Sabah central station in Sanaa ahead of a planned military operation, according to France 24.
Two Maldivian pilots employed by flydubai were taken into custody in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on October 3, and their families have been formally informed of their detention by the Maldivian embassy in the UAE, according to The Hindu. Flight FZ1073, carrying 174 passengers and crew members, was travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv when the alleged attack took place. The UAE has described the incident as an attempted terrorist attack and identified the accused co-pilot as 29-year-old al-Hammami.
Suspensions of flights to and from Riyadh now cover several international airlines, which extended cancellations through October 19 after Houthi attacks, and Delta has postponed its first direct US flights to Saudi Arabia to March 2027, according to France24.
Badr Abdelatty of Egypt urged Iran's Abbas Araghchi to help ease regional tensions and demanded that attacks on Saudi Arabia stop immediately, according to Middle East Eye. Egypt's Foreign Ministry said Abdelatty described the attacks as “unacceptable” and said there was “no justification for these attacks”. Abdelatty also urged Tehran and Washington to resume talks, saying diplomacy was the only route to settling their disputes and averting further instability.
Saudi Arabia plans to raise the capacity of the East-West pipeline that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz to 10 million barrels per day within two to three years, Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said, according to OilPrice. The 740-mile pipeline, also known as Petroline, has a maximum capacity of 7 million barrels per day and returned to service after a two-week suspension following drone attacks in September. Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said the company is studying “additional crude export routes” and working on “expanding overseas storage”.
The commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Major General Ahmad Vahidi, said no extra-regional power has the right to threaten, hold a domineering presence or intervene in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf, according to Mehr News. According to Middle East Eye, foreign powers have no right to interfere in the Strait of Hormuz, the IRGC commander-in-chief said.
Saudi Arabia stopped issuing public warnings of imminent military attacks in the days before the deadly strikes on Riyadh airport, which killed at least 18 people and wounded more than 300, according to Reuters. The last alert before the attacks went out on September 29, for Najran province, according to the agency, which says officials from an allied Western government asked Saudi authorities why the alerts had stopped.
Etihad cancelled flights between Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, citing “regional disruption”, according to Middle East Eye, and Qatar Airways temporarily suspended flights to and from Riyadh and Dammam, according to the same outlet. Saudi Arabia extended until Saturday the suspension of operations at King Khalid airport in Riyadh, after attacks that killed at least 18 people, according to Al Jazeera.
Saudi warplanes carried out airstrikes on multiple locations in Yemen early Tuesday local time, Houthi media reports, from Harf Sufyan district in Amran governorate, north of Sanaa, to Kamaran island and al-Qanawis district in al-Hodeidah governorate in western Yemen. The Houthis said they targeted the airport in Riyadh late on Monday, after the group’s attacks on King Khalid International airport killed 14 people and injured hundreds in the previous two days. Houthi official Mohammed Al Bukhaiti threatened a quick and painful response against the United States and all its interests in the region if the US gets involved in the aggression against Yemen, in an interview with Agence France-Presse (AFP). Asked what he planned to do about the Houthis, Trump said they are “misbehaving very badly”.
The spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition, Brigadier General Turki al-Maliki, said the coalition intercepted two ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis toward the Khamis Mushait governorate on Monday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi offered to help facilitate talks between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis in a call with his Saudi counterpart amid deadly attacks, according to The Jerusalem Post. Xinhua reported that Iran voiced readiness to provide any kind of assistance to help initiate dialogue between Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
The Houthis said they hit King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh with a ballistic missile in a precise strike and an airbase in Khamis Mushait with a drone, and warned international air carriers and passengers against flying to Saudi airports, according to TASS. Saudi Arabia said it destroyed a ballistic missile fired towards Riyadh, according to G1.
Saudi Arabia’s energy minister vowed a “serious” response to Houthi attacks on the kingdom’s airports and oil and gas facilities, according to BBC News. On Sunday, a Pakistani man was killed in an attack on a terminal at the capital’s King Khalid International Airport, a day after a Houthi missile hit another terminal, killing 12 people and forcing its closure, Saudi authorities said; the toll rose to 13 after an injured Indian national died, according to the Indian embassy. With attacks on Saudi Arabia and on oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz back at the center of supply concerns, oil climbed to its highest levels in nearly two weeks on Monday morning, according to OilPrice.com.
The General Authority of Civil Aviation extended the suspension of operations at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh to complete the necessary procedures to verify the safety of the facilities and their operational readiness, according to Reuters, in a text republished by Middle East Eye. A new attack hit Riyadh’s international airport on Sunday, a day after another attack on the airport killed at least 12 people and injured more than 300, according to France24. US government employees in Saudi Arabia now require special authorization to use the airports in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, according to Sputnik. The United Kingdom updated its official guidance on Sunday to advise against all but essential travel to all airports in Saudi Arabia except Medina International Airport.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said Tehran is “deeply concerned” about developments in the Arabian Peninsula and declared it ready “to help facilitate dialogue between the parties,” according to The Hindu. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that he discussed the ongoing conflict between Riyadh and the Houthis with his Saudi counterpart, Faisal bin Farhan and said, according to Sputnik, that the region’s crises have no military solution and that Iran is ready to provide any form of assistance to initiate dialogue between Saudi Arabia and Yemen and reach a political settlement.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif pledged to support Saudi Arabia “in every possible way” after Houthi attacks on the airports in Riyadh and Abha; the Riyadh attack killed at least 12 people and injured 309, according to Media Line, in a text republished by the Jerusalem Post. Sharif invoked the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, signed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, under which an attack against one country is considered an attack against all, and said Pakistan “will not tolerate any kind of aggression.”
The diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Anwar Gargash, said on Monday that targeting Saudi Arabia undermines the security of the UAE and all Gulf states, amid repeated attacks on Saudi Arabia during the past week, according to the Khaleej Times. Gargash called for revitalising joint Gulf action, particularly in its security and defence dimensions, and said Gulf security is indivisible and that all are targets.
The United States (US) Department of State urged on Sunday “extreme caution” at all major airports in Saudi Arabia, following the attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh the day before, according to Xinhua. The US mission advised citizens to avoid the Riyadh airport and said that US government employees require special authorization to use the airports in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam, according to Arab News.
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan and Türkiye, as the R4 Group, condemned on Sunday the ongoing Houthi attacks on the Kingdom, including those launched against King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, which killed and injured civilians and damaged civilian infrastructure, calling them a “blatant violation of international law” and a “flagrant violation” of Saudi sovereignty and territorial integrity, according to Arab News. The group reaffirmed solidarity with Saudi Arabia, with full support for all “legitimate measures and steps” the country takes to respond to the attacks, according to Reuters, in a text republished by the Lufkin Daily News.
India's embassy in Riyadh asked Indian nationals in Saudi Arabia to refrain from sharing and circulating videos related to the ongoing events. The embassy said one Indian national died in the attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and that three others are in intensive care, in stable condition.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister spoke with his Iranian counterpart about the recent escalation of the regional conflict and efforts to lower tensions, the officials’ first publicly reported contact since Iran-aligned Houthis intensified strikes on the kingdom, according to the Saudi state news agency, in a Reuters report republished by the Jerusalem Post.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Monday that it reclassified an incident in the vicinity of Sohar anchorage in Oman as an attack after confirming that the tanker was struck by a drone, according to the Jerusalem Post, in a Reuters report. Indian minister Sarbananda Sonowal said that nine Indian crew members have been rescued and are safe and that two Indian nationals remain missing, with search-and-rescue operations underway by the local Coast Guard.
Sunday’s strike on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh left one person dead and 11 wounded, according to Saudi Arabia’s Civil Aviation Authority. The person killed was a Pakistani national living in the country, according to TASS. Saudi Arabia said Sunday that it would “respond decisively” against the Iranian-backed Houthis, a day after a strike on Riyadh’s international airport, according to The Washington Post.
A new attack struck a passenger terminal at Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on Sunday, starting a fire and injuring people, according to Middle East Eye. Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said the attack “resulted in injuries” but gave no figure, and confirmed there are casualties, according to Sputnik Globe. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree renewed his warning against using Saudi airports and airspace, according to Middle East Eye.
Saturday's attack on Riyadh airport killed twelve people and wounded 309, the deadliest Saudi Arabia has seen in ten years, according to Le Monde. A French citizen is among the wounded, according to the newspaper. Russia condemned the attack and called on the parties to the conflicts in the Arabian Peninsula to refrain from strikes on civilian infrastructure, according to TASS, citing the Russian foreign ministry.
Houthi-affiliated media reported on Sunday an attack on Yemen's Sanaa International Airport that it said was carried out by Saudi Arabia, according to Middle East Eye. The same media reported that the Harf Sufyan district in the governorate of Amran, north of Sanaa, was targeted with seven air strikes, according to the same source.
The Houthis renewed their warning on Sunday to airlines, workers and travelers not to use airports in Saudi Arabia and said the warning should be taken seriously, after the attack on Riyadh’s international airport. According to Saudi authorities, cited by The Jerusalem Post, Saturday’s attack left 12 dead and more than 300 wounded. Saudi civil aviation extended the closure of King Khalid airport until 5 p.m. (UTC-4) on Sunday, under a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM). India condemned the attack, cited the 12 dead and more than 300 wounded and called attacks on civilians completely unacceptable.
All 22 Indian crew members of the MT GEM No. 2 oil tanker were rescued and are safe after an incident off the coast of Ras al-Khaimah, in the United Arab Emirates, the Indian consulate said on Sunday (October 11, 2026), without giving details of the incident, according to Reuters, in a text republished by The Hindu.
Yemen's Saba news agency said Saudi Arabia targeted the Majz district in Saada province six times, in northern Yemen, according to Mehr News. Schools in Riyadh will move to remote learning for a week, by order of the education ministry, according to an email sent to parents on Sunday, following the deadly attacks on the capital's airport. All flights were diverted from Riyadh on Saturday and operations at the airport, which serves a city of roughly 8 million people, were temporarily suspended, the Saudi civil aviation authority said.
The UN secretary-general, António Guterres, condemned the Houthi attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, which reportedly killed 12 people and injured hundreds of civilians, according to TASS. The secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Jasem al-Budaiwi, called the attacks “treacherous terrorist attacks”. Asked on Saturday whether he had changed his mind about joining Saudi strikes on the group, Donald Trump said the United States “may”. Four Saudis, two Bangladeshis, one US citizen, one Egyptian, one Jordanian, one Syrian, one Palestinian and one Sudanese are among the 12 dead, according to Le Monde.
A US fighter jet struck the stern of the Panama-flagged cargo vessel M/V Ocean Molica, also known as Arika Sun, with a precision munition in the Gulf of Oman, fully disabling the ship’s propulsion without harming the crew, according to the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), cited by Middle East Eye. According to CENTCOM, the ship was attempting to run the naval blockade against Iran after departing an Iranian port and ignored repeated warnings. During three months of strict enforcement, US forces disabled four commercial vessels, turned around 135 and destroyed 10 tankers linked to the Revolutionary Guard’s shadow network.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the Houthi attacks against Saudi Arabia, including Saturday’s attack on King Khalid airport in Riyadh, according to Al Jazeera. In a statement, Rubio said Washington strongly condemns the attacks by what he called terrorist Houthis and confirmed that the airport strike killed numerous innocent lives, including an American citizen, according to TASS.
Saudi Arabia's civil aviation authority said an attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh killed at least 12 people and wounded 309, according to Middle East Eye. The dead included four Saudi citizens, two Bangladeshi nationals, one US citizen, one Egyptian, one Jordanian, one Syrian, one Palestinian and one Sudanese, according to NPR. US President Donald Trump said he is evaluating whether the country should join Saudi strikes against the Houthis after the Saturday attack, according to NPR.
Freight rates for supertankers topped $1.4 million per day on the Gulf-to-East Asia route, a 40% jump in the first week of October alone, according to data compiled by Bloomberg and cited by OilPrice. Ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman tie up the tankers for weeks waiting outside the Strait of Hormuz, tightening the supply of Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) vessels and also pressuring Suezmax and Aframax ships, according to OilPrice.
The Saudi-led coalition said a projectile fell near Dammam airport. Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Maliki said Saturday evening that the projectile fell near King Fahd International Airport in the eastern Saudi city of Dammam, according to Xinhua, in a text republished by NAMPA. Reuters reported the same day that the coalition said the projectile fell in the vicinity of Dammam airport.
A missile struck the complex housing terminals 3 and 4 for domestic flights at Riyadh’s King Khalid airport, wounding many people, according to The Hindu. As a precaution, the airport will remain closed to arrivals and departures until about midnight local time, according to TASS. US President Donald Trump said the United States may join Saudi strikes against the Houthis and will decide quickly, according to The Jerusalem Post. After learning of the attack, he said: “We may. We’re going to look at it,” according to The Hindu.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said an oil tanker exploded and caught fire after striking a naval mine in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Jerusalem Post. The Guards did not specify the tanker’s name or flag, according to the Jerusalem Post.
A Congressional Research Service report released this week says the United States military had 81 aircraft destroyed or damaged in the war with Iran, according to CNN. The number includes airplanes, helicopters and drones, with MQ-9 Reaper drones accounting for more than half of the losses; the list includes an F-35A and an E-3 Sentry. The total cost of the aircraft lost is between $1.9 billion and $3.3 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) cited in the report.
The King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh temporarily suspended operations after an attack on Saturday that wounded several people, according to France 24. Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said the number of wounded was still being assessed and that operations remained suspended pending the completion of the damage assessment and the verification of the safety of the facilities, according to France 24. Reuters reported that several people were wounded in the attack, according to the civil aviation authority. A diplomatic source attributed Saturday’s attack to a missile fired by the Houthis, and the group did not announce a new attack on Saturday, according to France 24.
A pilot for the flagship carrier Saudia is among the three dead in the Houthi missile attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, which threaten to choke off business travel, according to the Wall Street Journal, in a text republished by the Hindustan Times.
The city of Taiz is under houthi siege again, after the group captured the town of al-Turbah by October 4, severing the only remaining main road between Taiz city and other government-held areas, according to Al Jazeera. In early September, the Houthis launched an offensive along the Red Sea coast of Taiz governorate, according to Al Jazeera. Residents are stocking up on water and other essentials, fearful of shortages as food and fuel prices rise under the new siege.
Oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz fell to a seven-day average of 9.9 million barrels per day as of October 7, 42 percent below prewar levels and down from about 15.5 million in September, according to Kpler data cited by the Financial Times. Kpler said flows had recovered to prewar levels in September, but intensified attacks on vessels drove exports sharply lower this week.
The US Central Command (Centcom) said it redirected 133 commercial vessels as of October 9 through the Strait of Hormuz to enforce the naval blockade against Iran. In a post on X, Centcom called the US blockade against Iran “ironclad”. A second outlet, Ajel English, reported that Centcom announced 133 commercial vessels redirected to enforce the maritime blockade on Iran since its resumption.
The Saudi-led coalition said it destroyed 136 military targets in areas controlled by the Houthis in a large-scale operation, according to Le Monde. Saudi Arabia said Houthi attacks on Riyadh’s international airport earlier this week killed three people, according to Le Monde. Yemen’s government said 1,400 Houthis were killed in 2,750 strikes, according to the Middle East Eye.
Turkey, Qatar and Kuwait condemned Houthi attacks on Saudi airports earlier this week, which killed three Saudi nationals and damaged property, according to Middle East Eye. Turkey’s Foreign Ministry denounced “in the strongest terms” the strikes on Abha International Airport in the south and King Khalid International Airport, according to the same report.
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said on Friday it was carrying out a wide-ranging operation against the elements and capabilities of the Houthis, according to a statement by the coalition spokesperson. The statement said that 136 military targets had been destroyed in areas controlled by the Houthis, adding that the coalition was providing round-the-clock air support to Yemeni government forces. The UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, told the Security Council that the country had slid back into full-scale war. According to the UN, at least 46 civilians have been killed and more than 130 injured since August in the fighting.
United States (US) President Donald Trump claimed the country “shouldn’t worry now” because it stopped Iran from having a nuclear weapon and that the war will end soon, in a speech at a White House Columbus Day celebration. Trump alleged that 28 million barrels of oil were “taken out” on Thursday and that diesel prices will tumble. A high-ranking Iranian source told TASS that Iran won’t hold anything back in response to new attacks by the US and Israel.
Houthi media reported that Saudi strikes on Sanaa airport killed two people on Friday, a day after the group launched strikes against Riyadh’s airport, which it said killed three people.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said talks with the country can only succeed without pressure and threats, according to The Hindu. He made the remarks at a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in Turkmenistan, according to Al-Monitor. Pezeshkian said negotiation conducted in the shadow of force is imposition and coercion.
Pakistan says it has a substantial contingent of forces and resources in Saudi Arabia in a defensive capacity, amid Houthi attacks. The Pakistani foreign ministry spokesperson said those troops would not cross the border to attack the Houthis and would act in defence of Saudi territory. The Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, signed on August 7, 2026 by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye, commits the three countries to treat an armed attack against one member as an attack against all.
The United States (US) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued alerts after the Houthi attacks on Riyadh airport. The US Embassy in Jordan issued a travel advisory to Americans in the Middle East, pointing to the Houthi attack on Riyadh airport, and EASA recommended that airlines not operate within additional portions of Saudi airspace.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it struck the gas carrier MT Sunshine, later called NV Sunshine, which was attempting to transit via an unauthorized route in the southern part of the Strait of Hormuz, according to TASS. The force said the vessel suffered a massive fire in the engine room and propulsion system, according to Al Jazeera. The IRGC warned that vessels violating its rules and passing through the Strait of Hormuz would be punished, according to the Hindustan Times.
The Saudi-led coalition said on Wednesday it had destroyed 82 Houthi military targets across several provinces, in a large-scale operation, according to CGTN. Coalition spokesman Turki Al Maliki said on X that the operation targeted sites in Saada, Hodeidah, Al-Jawf and Marib. The Houthi group said Saudi Arabia had carried out 156 air and missile strikes on Sanaa, the capital it controls.
Yemeni Deputy Minister of Defense, Major General Samir Al-Sabri, told Asharq that forces are advancing on more than one front and that Sanaa is the main battle, according to Arab News. He cited progress on the West Coast, in Dhubab, in the Kahbub mountains and in regions of Marib Governorate.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the Houthi attacks targeting Saudi Arabia, including the strikes on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport, which resulted in casualties, saying Pakistan stands in unwavering solidarity with the kingdom on sovereignty, territorial integrity and security, under the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, according to the Middle East Eye.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander Ahmad Vahidi said that no extra-regional power has the right to threaten, establish a domineering presence in, or interfere in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, according to Mehr News. Brent was trading at $102.83 and WTI at $90.33, up on the week after tanker attacks, with only seven vessels crossing the strait on Tuesday, the lowest figure since late July, according to OilPrice.
Reuters reported that Syria is considering providing military assistance to Saudi Arabia, including defensive aid or sending forces to fight the Houthis alongside Riyadh-backed Yemeni troops. Ahmad Zaidan, media adviser to Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara, denied the reports and called any Saudi request for Syrian forces in Saudi Arabia or Yemen “lies”. Syria’s foreign ministry condemned Houthi attacks on Saudi civilian installations, including Abha International Airport and King Khalid International Airport, which killed three people and injured 36.
At least 81 US military aircraft, including fighter jets and drones, were lost or damaged in Operation Epic Fury against Iran, according to a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report released on Monday and reported by Al Jazeera. The CBO estimated the cost of the aircraft losses as of August 1 at between $1.9bn and $3.3bn. The aircraft include 12 F-15E fighter jets, one F-35A and seven KC-135 tanker aircraft; 45 of the 81 are MQ-9 Reaper drones. In a separate report in September, the CBO estimated the total cost of the war with Iran as of August 1 at about $38bn.
France and Saudi Arabia are studying options involving French military assets to protect the Yanbu oil terminal, France’s Armed Forces Chief of Staff, General Fabien Mandon, said in a parliamentary hearing, according to Middle East Eye. France has already deployed around 2,000 troops to the region to protect Gulf allies, including Qatar and Kuwait, Mandon added.
Iranian attacks hit at least nine vessels in the Strait of Hormuz last week, a level of attacks on shipping not seen since July, according to The Washington Post. The uptick came after the Trump administration celebrated that US naval escorts had allowed oil flows to reach nearly prewar levels.
President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States has no plans to attack Iran before November’s midterm elections, an unusual public pronouncement about military plans that came as he said “productive conversations” with Tehran were underway, according to The Washington Post. The USS Abraham Lincoln will return home to San Diego later today after 265 uninterrupted days at sea supporting the Iran war, a record-long deployment, according to The Guardian.
Saudi authorities said Houthi strikes on the airports in Riyadh and Abha killed three people and injured dozens, according to The New York Times. Air India said flight AI2243, from Delhi to Riyadh, returned to Delhi on Thursday in the interest of passenger and crew safety; the service was cancelled, with full refunds offered. Flights were disrupted after Iran-aligned Houthi rebels reportedly targeted Saudi Arabia, including a missile fired towards Riyadh International Airport, according to The Hindu.
The World Bank projects a 2.1% contraction in 2026 for the economies of the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan, with Gulf Cooperation Council states shrinking by an average of 4.3%, according to the Jerusalem Post. Qatar and Kuwait are the hardest hit, with GDP contracting 20.9% and 14.6% respectively, while the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia are the least affected, at 1.6% and 2.0%. The bank attributes the decline to the closure of Hormuz: Gulf oil production fell from a prewar average of about 26 million to about 16 million barrels a day in March, according to The National.
Brent crude rose by 3.8% to $104 a barrel on Thursday. The White House has asked the Pentagon to draw up options for strikes against Iran before the US midterm elections, according to a report in The Atlantic cited by The Guardian. Attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz reached their highest levels of the war, cutting traffic through the waterway.
Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, said the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until the country’s problems are resolved, according to the IRNA news agency, cited by TASS. Mokhber added that Tehran is “changing its strategy in proportion to changes in the adversary’s strategy.”
The Houthis said they struck King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh with a ballistic missile on October 7 — the second time this week they claimed an attack on the main airport in the Saudi capital, according to Al-Monitor. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a post on X that the group’s armed forces struck the airport and that the strike was “accurate, by God’s grace,” and caused an “air traffic disruption.” The Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen’s government said the missile was intercepted.
The number of tankers crossing the Strait of Hormuz fell to a two-month low amid renewed attacks, with crude down 27% from the previous week's high to at least 10.1 million barrels a day and at least 12 tanker attacks between September 28 and October 2, according to OilPrice.
A tanker 51 nautical miles north of Madinat ash Shamal, Qatar, reported being struck by multiple projectiles, with casualties, according to the British agency UKMTO — which said authorities were investigating and advised caution in transit, without specifying the ship’s origin.
Analyst Michelle Brohard of Kpler said she suspects Gulf countries pay Iran for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, possibly 10% to 20% of the cargo. The report itself notes that the suspicion has not been independently verified and that there is no public proof of a systematic state toll system, according to Al Jazeera, in a text republished by Yahoo.
Videos obtained by CBS News show Iranian attacks with ballistic missiles, drones and F-5 jets on the U.S. military base at Camp Buehring, in Kuwait, at the start of the war, according to the network. Service members who spoke to CBS said the base was abandoned and the troops moved out into the desert at night, where they set up forward bases; no one died there from enemy fire, according to CBS News.
Iran and Oman plan to notify an international body soon about the agreement on safe navigation corridors in the Strait of Hormuz, according to spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei, in a text by IRNA carried by TASS. Baghaei said the consultations between Tehran and Muscat were successful and that the parties reached an agreement on the geographical coordinates of the corridors.
The White House asked the Pentagon to prepare options for strikes on Iran that could take place before the November 3 midterm elections, according to The Atlantic, which cited two administration officials in a report carried by The Jerusalem Post. US Central Command is developing the options, and the potential targets, the scope of an operation and whether President Donald Trump will authorize military action remain under discussion. The Pentagon has also presented options for operations after the elections, ranging from limited attacks to a broader campaign that could include additional strikes on Iran’s energy industry.
The Saudi-led coalition said it destroyed 82 targets in a “comprehensive operation” across Saada, Hodeidah, al-Jawf and Marib, according to spokesperson Major-General Turki al-Maliki. According to him, the targets included 11 mountain-based ballistic missile storage sites in Saada, as well as command and control centres, communications systems, missile and weapons depots. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the Ansar Allah movement launched ballistic missile strikes on coalition positions south of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Three people were killed and 36 others were injured in two attacks on international airports in Saudi Arabia, according to the kingdom’s General Authority of Civil Aviation, in a TASS report. In the strike on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, a Sudanese national was killed and eight others were injured, including five Saudis, two Egyptians and one Pakistani.
The US State Department approved the sale of more than $2bn in weapons systems to Egypt, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), notifying Congress last week, according to Middle East Eye. The priciest purchase among the tranche was for the UAE: up to 10,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System-II (APKWS-II) kits, which turn unguided rockets into precision munitions, for about $1.04bn. Egypt was cleared to buy more than 2,000 FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missiles and up to 200 Javelin launch units, for about $832m.
Saudi Arabia launched an air safety probe into the flydubai flight FZ1073 incident, alongside the UAE-led criminal investigation, according to three people close to the matter, in a Reuters report republished by The Straits Times. The country notified specialist aviation agencies abroad that it would carry out a safety investigation under international rules; the flight was in Saudi airspace when the co-pilot attacked the captain with an axe. Israel has offered to take part in any Saudi-led safety investigation but has not so far been invited, according to the head of Israel’s air accident agency, to Reuters.
Iraq devalued its currency on Wednesday, changing the official exchange rate from around 1,300 dinars to the U.S. dollar to 1,500 dinars to the dollar, according to AP. The central bank said the new rate had been decided at a Cabinet meeting the night before to meet the relevant financial, economic and monetary requirements. The gap between the official and parallel rates had widened in recent months as a result of the U.S.-Iran war, which has sometimes spilled over into Iraq, and disruptions to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Repatriation flights operated by Israeli carriers to bring citizens back from Dubai to Tel Aviv have been canceled after the UAE revoked their landing permit, according to The Times of Israel. Arkia said it had the required permissions until Tuesday evening and had been futilely working to restore them.
Turkey is sending mainly defensive and technical support to Saudi Arabia to help it fight Yemen’s Houthis, two officials said on Wednesday, according to Reuters, in a text republished by the Jerusalem Post. The support expected would be only military equipment, intelligence sharing and weapons systems, with no other form of deployment by the alliance so far, according to the officials. Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said, after a meeting of the Mecca alliance, that the sides had discussed what support to provide Saudi Arabia for its defensive capabilities.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in Athens that Iran has lost complete control of the Strait of Hormuz, that the strait is open, that almost as much oil is flowing out as before the conflict began and that Tehran’s economy is in “total and complete freefall,” according to Al Arabiya English.
Ali Fadavi, head of the advisory group to the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), claimed on Sunday evening, October 4, that for the first time no American naval vessels are present in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz or the Gulf of Oman, according to IranWire.
Reports indicate that explosions were heard in Riyadh without any prior warning being announced, according to Mehr News. Saudi authorities had not commented by the time of publication on reports of suspended airport operations and the downing of the drone. The Houthis claim to have shot down a Saudi CH-4 reconnaissance and strike drone in the airspace of Al-Jawf, according to TASS.
Saudi Arabia's civil aviation authority said airports in Najran and Jizan were hit on Monday, with three lightly injured and damage to both facilities, according to AP, in a text republished by PBS News. The Saudi-led coalition said on Tuesday it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Iran-backed Houthis toward Khamis Mushait, a city in southwestern Saudi Arabia home to a major Saudi military base. Al Jazeera reported two powerful explosions near Aden international airport, in a Middle East Eye live blog update.
The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis towards the city of Khamis Mushait, in southern Saudi Arabia, according to Middle East Eye. The coalition also said it intercepted a missile fired by Yemen’s Houthis, according to the Hindustan Times.
Vitol’s chief executive said around 14 million barrels per day are leaving the Middle East — 12 million barrels per day of crude and 2 million of products —, according to Reuters. Executives say the world has nearly burned through its oil stockpile buffer, according to Reuters.
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) denied reports of a downed US Navy helicopter in the Red Sea, after news that an MH-60R Seahawk disappeared from radar with a distress signal off the Saudi coast, according to TASS. The command said all US military aircraft and personnel across the Middle East are safe and accounted for.
Turkey plans to step up its military support for Saudi Arabia in the coming weeks by deploying additional personnel and defence equipment amid escalating Houthi attacks on the kingdom, several Turkish officials told Middle East Eye on Tuesday, October 6. In a joint statement on Monday, Turkey, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia said they had decided to immediately implement their collective defence commitments under the Makkah Alliance for Defence. Two Turkish officials said the country had maintained technical teams, air defence systems and electronic warfare equipment in the kingdom since last year to protect critical infrastructure, including energy facilities.
A Panama-flagged commercial vessel was hit by a projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, India's Ministry of External Affairs said. Of the 19 crew members of the MT On Peace, 17 are Indian; 12 were injured, including 11 Indians, and were evacuated to Khasab, Oman. India condemned the attack and called for an immediate halt to attacks on commercial navigation in the region.
Yemen's government says it retook the Red Sea port city of Mocha on Monday, according to the Hindustan Times. The Houthis of the Ansar Allah movement denied the advance of pro-government forces in western Yemen and said they retain control of their positions, according to TASS. The Houthis also said more than 200 Yemeni government army troops were killed or injured in dozens of strikes.
Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkiye decided on Monday, October 5, to move immediately to implement their collective defence commitments and ensure the rapid deployment of the agreed forces to Saudi territory, according to Reuters in a text republished by The Hindu, a move Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry describes as providing the agreed military forces and capabilities and ensuring their rapid deployment to the kingdom, according to Al Jazeera. Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman said the activation responds to the attacks and all those responsible for them, according to Al Jazeera.
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said it had destroyed a ballistic-missile launch platform in Sanaa and a depot housing 20 ballistic missiles in northwestern Saada, according to the Middle East Eye.
Forces allied with Yemen’s internationally recognized government retook the town of Dhubab, just north of the Bab el-Mandeb strait, as well as Bab and Hadeid, Yemeni officials told the AP in a text republished by The Hindu. Saudi-led coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki said 100 fighter jets were supporting the Yemeni government forces, and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Saudi-backed government was expected to hit back to reclaim territory, according to the AP in a text republished by The Hindu.
A US Navy MH-60R Seahawk helicopter, using the call sign VVHR512, declared an emergency over the Red Sea near Yanbu, on Saudi Arabia's western coast, at about 5:20 p.m. ET on Monday, and the US Navy has not yet confirmed what happened to the aircraft. After the signal, the aircraft disappeared from public flight-tracking platforms, according to TASS.
The Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree said drone and missile attacks targeted King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. The same statement said the Aramco refinery in Rabigh was also hit, along with military installations and smaller airports in the country’s south. According to Middle East Eye, the group targeted King Khalid International Airport for the second time on Monday. The Houthis declared Saudi airspace an open theatre for their operations, except the holy airspaces of Makkah and Madinah. UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed concern over the “strong escalation” of the fighting in Yemen and condemned the Houthi attacks on Saudi territory, according to AFP.
Forces of Yemen’s internationally recognised government recaptured Dhubab, just north of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, along with Bab and Hadeid, under Saudi coalition cover, according to the Times of India. Saudi coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki said 100 fighter jets are supporting government forces and that the coalition secured air protection of the strait. The escalation killed at least 959 people and wounded more than 4,200, with about 174,097 displaced inside Yemen, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Russia condemned the crime of the FlyDubai co-pilot, according to the Foreign Ministry, in a statement cited by TASS. Australian authorities launched a probe into the Omani co-pilot’s time in Australia after he was detained over an alleged attempt to seize an Israel-bound aircraft and crash it, according to AP, in a text republished by the San Bernardino Sun. The pilot is in custody in the United Arab Emirates after the alleged attempt to take control of the plane.
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey agreed to immediately implement their collective defence commitments, with the rapid deployment of agreed military forces and capabilities into Saudi Arabia, according to the Times of India. Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman said the alliance committee agreed to activate collective deterrence measures in response to attacks by the Houthi group. Pakistan and Turkey announced military support for Saudi Arabia after the emergency meeting of the alliance committee, in a joint statement by the three foreign ministers, according to the Middle East Eye.
Yemen's military said it carried out more than 1,000 strikes and began an offensive against the Houthi-held capital, Sanaa, with 100 planes from the Saudi-led coalition flying sorties at dawn, according to The Hindu, in an AFP report. Coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Maliki said 100 jets flew at daybreak in the operation dubbed “Dawn of Yemen”, providing “round-the-clock air support for the Yemeni armed forces on the ground”, according to The Hindu. The Houthis effectively encircled the city of Taiz after cutting the main supply route linking it to Aden, also according to The Hindu.
Saudi Aramco’s chief executive said, according to Reuters, that replenishing global crude and fuel stocks could take two years. According to Nasser, Saudi Arabia’s maximum sustainable production capacity of 12 million barrels per day could be made available within days, and Aramco is studying new routes to bypass Hormuz.
The British United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre said a tanker 11 nautical miles north of Khasab, Oman, was hailed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces and warned it would be targeted unless it turned back, and the tanker complied. The tanker's master confirmed it had complied with the instruction to turn back, according to Mehr News, citing UKMTO.
The Saudi-led coalition joined Operation Yemen Dawn to wrest the Red Sea from the Houthis, according to the Times of India.
The spokesperson for Yemen's government-aligned forces says 1,122 attacks were carried out against Houthi targets, according to Middle East Eye. The same spokesperson claims around 1,747 Houthi fighters were killed, according to Middle East Eye.
Yemen’s foreign ministry asked for international community support to confront the Houthis, described as a terrorist militia, according to Foreign Minister Afrah al-Zouba, who called that support a shared responsibility. The Saudi-led Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen pledged full support for the offensive announced by the Yemeni government against the Houthis, according to CNN.
Initial findings indicate that the Flydubai co-pilot accused of attacking the captain and trying to take control of an Israel-bound flight acted alone, according to US authorities and a former Israeli security official. US officials stress that the investigation into last Wednesday’s incident is still in its early stages. Emirati authorities, who are overseeing the investigation, said on Saturday that the co-pilot allegedly attacked the captain with a crash ax and tried to take control of the flight controls.
Yemen’s Saudi-backed government declared a “battle for liberation” to retake the territory still held by the Houthis, according to Al Jazeera. AP News reported that the Yemeni government declared a major operation against the Houthis.
Smoke rose from a foam factory in Yemen's Houthi-held capital, Sanaa, after a strike that the Houthi-run broadcaster Al Masirah attributed to Saudi Arabia, according to Middle East Eye. Yemen's Saudi-backed government forces said they carried out strikes on Houthi targets in Sanaa and elsewhere on Sunday, according to Middle East Eye.
The Houthis said they launched ballistic missiles and drones at an Aramco facility in Riyadh, in a statement posted on X on Saturday by military spokesman Yahya Saree. The spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, Turki al-Maliki, called the claims of an attack on Riyadh “misleading”. Early on Sunday, the coalition said it carried out 97 “precise targeting operations” against Houthi reinforcements on the Tor al-Baha front and the Taiz axis, using warplanes, drones, artillery, missiles and snipers. A tanker reported seeing several explosions about 60 nautical miles south of the Yemeni port city of Mocha in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO). The Houthis also said they forced two Saudi F-15 formations to withdraw from Taiz’s airspace with locally made anti-aircraft missiles.
Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said that if the enemies again choose the path of military confrontation, they will receive a stronger response than before, according to the Tehran Times. Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi said that the viewpoints received from Washington on Iran's seven-day proposal for the Strait of Hormuz are under study in Tehran, according to Mehr News.
Turkey said the Strategic Political and Defense Committee of the Mecca defence pact, which includes Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, will meet in Riyadh on Monday, according to Middle East Eye. The meeting will address recent developments in the region and the stage reached in the Alliance's institutionalisation efforts, the Turkish ministry statement said. Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will travel to Riyadh with the defence minister and the chief of staff for the committee meeting of the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, an alliance founded in August with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, according to the Anadolu Agency.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said the Strait of Hormuz will only reopen when the United States meets seven conditions of the Islamabad Memorandum, according to Iranian state media cited by the Hindustan Times. Iran presented a proposal at the United Nations General Assembly to reopen Hormuz within seven days if the conditions are met, and the United States replied through Qatari intermediaries, according to the Hindustan Times. Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the US response is under review and that some points still need to be communicated to Washington through mediators.
OPEC+ is expected to keep its oil production targets steady for November, according to a Reuters report cited by Mehr News. Gulf producers have seen exports fluctuating between 60 and 80 percent below normal levels in recent months, according to the same report.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told the United States that there is no military solution, nor any solution based on new sanctions to the conflict between the two countries, according to The Hindu. Araghchi warned that, if the enemies again choose the path of military confrontation, Iran's response will be stronger than before, according to France24, in an AFP report. Spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei characterised the latest US counterproposal as being in line with previous US proposals concerning nuclear issues.
The spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, Esmaeil Baghaei, said Iranian elites are holding serious discussions on the possibility of the country withdrawing from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), TASS reported. According to him, Tehran continues to fulfill all its obligations under the treaty for the time being, and the ministry will abide by the decision of the competent authorities. Iranian lawmakers, meanwhile, are pushing a fast-tracked motion calling for the country's withdrawal from the treaty, according to Tasnim News Agency.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until seven Iranian conditions set out in a June interim agreement with the United States are met, according to The Hindu. Qalibaf said Iran's position is clear and firm and cited the Islamabad Memorandum, according to Nournews.
A United Arab Emirates official said the flydubai co-pilot attacked the captain with an axe, the BBC reported. A publication linked to Al-Qaeda reportedly called for copycat attacks on American and Israeli airliners, according to the Hindustan Times; the call appeared in the latest edition of al-Bayan, a weekly launched in July by supporters of Al-Qaeda.
Iran opened a military training centre in Tehran on Saturday aimed at preparing citizens to confront US and Israeli forces, according to reports cited by the Middle East Eye. Ali Kowsari, deputy for training at the Basij organisation, said 1,000 battalions had been prepared for training.
Saudi Arabia has not reported an attack on Aramco in Riyadh, nor has the state oil giant commented on the cause of the fire, according to Al Jazeera. The Saudi-led coalition said it carried out 97 “precise targeting operations” against Houthi reinforcements on the Tor al-Baha front and the Taiz axis, according to the Yemeni government.
At least three tankers were struck by unidentified projectiles in and around the Strait of Hormuz since October 1, according to United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) warnings. In its weekly review released on October 2, UKMTO said 91 incidents of damage to vessels have been reported since February. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is “ironclad” and that US President Donald Trump has “all the options he needs on the table” if Iran continues to “play games” with the strait, according to the Associated Press, in a report carried by the Times of Israel.
The Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said the group struck an oil facility in Riyadh with ballistic missiles and drones, claiming the attacks caused fires. In a post on X, he said the strikes were a response to Saudi air raids on territory the group controls in Yemen, including Sanaa. An AFP journalist at the scene reported seeing fire engines trying to extinguish a blaze at Aramco’s Riyadh refinery, with ambulances and police vehicles stationed nearby.
Crude shipments from the Gulf region returned to pre-war levels between September 1 and 28, with at least 16.5 million barrels per day, according to maritime intelligence and research firm Kpler, in a report by The Times of India. Before the war, 83% of the region’s crude crossed the Strait of Hormuz; in September, 40% was exported through pipelines in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) without crossing the strait. The International Energy Agency (IEA) said member countries had released 325 million barrels of oil and oil products from strategic reserves, out of 400 million barrels pledged in March.
The director of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization said on Saturday that flights operated by Iranian and Iraqi airlines between the two countries will resume on Sunday, according to Mehr News. The Iraqi government had said on Friday that it reached an agreement allowing Iranian airlines, except Mahan Air, to operate 40 daily flights to and from Najaf, after Baghdad secured a US exemption, according to Mehr News.
Iran’s rial continued its decline on Saturday, as the central bank announced an injection of up to $2 billion to support the currency while the economy faces US sanctions and a naval blockade, according to Middle East Eye. The dollar was sold at around 2.688 million rials, up from 2.632 million on Friday, according to bon-bast.com.
Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior adviser to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution on international affairs, advised the United Arab Emirates (UAE) not to challenge Iran’s sovereignty over its three islands in the Persian Gulf, according to Mehr News. He dismissed recent UAE claims at the UN General Assembly regarding sovereignty over Greater Tunb, Lesser Tunb, and Abu Musa, saying the three islands will remain Iran’s forever.
The Iraq Oil Tankers Company transported two million barrels of Iraqi crude aboard a very large crude carrier (VLCC) through the Strait of Hormuz, its director general said in a statement, describing it as the company’s first such operation in decades, according to Middle East Eye.
Blasts were heard in Sanaa, and the Houthis blamed the attacks on Saudi Arabia, according to France24. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted and destroyed four drones launched by the Houthis toward Khamis Mushait, in southern Saudi Arabia, as well as two ballistic missiles, according to Israel National News.
Yemeni government forces have confirmed attacks on what they describe as legitimate vital military targets in the Houthi-held capital Sanaa, according to Middle East Eye. Government-affiliated media reported a series of air strikes on Houthi positions in the Al-Nahdain and Jabal Attan areas of the city.
Flames and smoke were seen rising from a facility belonging to Saudi oil giant Aramco south of Riyadh on Saturday, an AFP journalist at the scene said. A large plume of smoke and fire was seen in the vicinity of an Aramco facility in the Saudi capital, a witness told Reuters, in a text republished by Middle East Eye.
Dubai’s Crown Prince, Hamdan bin Mohammed, praised the “courage” of Indian pilot Smit Machchhar for averting a possible tragedy on flydubai flight FZ1073 and visited the pilot in hospital, where he remains under treatment, the Hindu reported. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) attorney general, Hamad Saif Al Shamsi, said the co-pilot used a crash axe to attack Machchhar and attempted to take control of the aircraft, the state-run WAM news agency reported.
An official of Iran’s security council, Mohsen Rezaei, hit back on Saturday at the claim US President Donald Trump made in Denton, Texas, that Tehran was approaching surrender, according to the Hindustan Times. Rezaei said the United States can win every day in its own imagination, but that reality is shaped by Iran — by its people, its soldiers and its missiles.
Yemen’s army said it caused more than 1,500 Houthi casualties in the past 24 hours, according to Al Jazeera.
Russia’s ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mikhail Ulyanov, dismissed the US call for Iran to abandon its nuclear program, according to Mehr News Agency. Ulyanov said Iran is not obliged to abandon the program, which is the country’s inalienable right.
Saudi Arabia and Yemeni government forces are planning a major counteroffensive against the Houthi Ansar Allah movement, but the United States is not yet prepared to participate, according to TASS. Washington has rebuffed, for the second time in recent weeks, the Saudi request to join the operation and conduct airstrikes against Houthi positions, and had provided Riyadh with more than 200 Houthi targets to strike, TASS reported.
The attorney-general of the United Arab Emirates classified the Flydubai flight episode as a terrorist attack and said the investigation found the co-pilot had planned to carry out a terrorist attack, according to the state-run WAM news agency, cited by TASS. The co-pilot attacked the captain with a crash axe in an attempt to take control of the aircraft, according to the BBC.
Yemen's armed forces said they carried out 71 targeted operations against Houthi military sites, supply routes and gatherings of fighters across Taiz province, hitting positions in multiple districts, destroying several logistics vehicles and causing fighter casualties, according to Breaking The News, citing Al Jazeera.
President Trump's top cabinet members huddled for hours at Camp David on Friday to discuss next steps in the Iran war and the Saudi-Houthi conflict in Yemen, according to three U.S. officials who spoke to Axios. Vice President JD Vance chaired the meeting, which included Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, White House envoy Steve Witkoff, CIA director John Ratcliffe and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine. The meeting was not announced by the Trump administration.
The Flydubai co-pilot who attacked the captain has been identified as 29-year-old Omani national Hamam al-Hammami, according to ABC News, cited by TASS. A source close to the United Arab Emirates government accused Israel of exploiting the incident for political purposes and delaying the restoration of Flydubai service, and claimed that, according to Emirati officials, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking to connect the attack to Iran for political reasons ahead of Israel's election, according to Middle East Eye, which cites Ynet.
The Flydubai co-pilot who officials said nearly crashed a Tel Aviv-bound flight with 182 people aboard had been barred from flying by his native Oman over concerns he had adopted extremist views, according to the Associated Press, in a text republished by The Economic Times. Israel and the United Arab Emirates agreed on repatriation flights beginning Friday to bring back passengers stranded after commercial travel between the two countries was suspended, according to The Hindu.
The master of a crude oil tanker reported being struck by an unknown projectile 4 nautical miles east of Oman, according to Middle East Eye, citing the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO). The British maritime security agency said all crew are reported safe and no environmental impact is currently reported, and advised vessels to transit with caution. Türkiye Today reported, citing a British maritime security agency, that a tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, igniting a fire aboard.
The Saudi-led coalition accused the Houthis of striking the Taibah electricity distribution station with a drone, which provides power to the Prophet’s Mosque, in Medina, according to Euronews. A senior Houthi official again rejected allegations that the movement had targeted Islamic holy sites, calling them a “lie”. Turkey condemned the alleged attack and voiced support for Saudi Arabia.
The United States sent one additional Patriot battery to Saudi Arabia to protect a key oil facility and another to Qatar to protect a natural gas facility, according to Axios, in a report published by Middle East Eye. Gulf allies, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, already operate their own batteries, but have relied on Washington for additional protection as they have borne the brunt of Iran's retaliation for US and Israeli attacks.
Pakistan sent four cargo planes of armaments to the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government of Yemen in September, with delivery in Aden, according to Reuters, in a report published by Middle East Eye. The shipment included air defence systems, light artillery, drones and anti-drone systems, and Pakistani military advisers are on the ground with their Saudi counterparts.
The Indian pilot told Prime Minister Modi, in a video call from a hospital bed in Abu Dhabi, that he managed to open the cockpit door to ask for help, according to Reuters. The account was recorded in a nearly 10-minute clip released on the prime minister’s social media channels. The jet, with 174 people on board, plunged nearly 14,000 ft (4,267 m) in less than 30 seconds in the incident.
Saudi Arabia is planning an offensive against the Houthis in Yemen, with options including a coastal push to secure the Red Sea shipping route, according to Reuters, in a text published by Al-Monitor. The operation would be led on the ground by Yemeni forces overseen by Riyadh and supported by Saudi air strikes, according to six people with knowledge of the preparations. The central goal is to reverse the Houthis’ rapid gains last month, when they advanced down the coast and seized control of the Bab el-Mandeb strait. More than 100,000 Yemeni troops could be mobilized, depending on the scale of the offensive.
Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia will hold an emergency meeting of the strategic political defence committee under the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement in Riyadh next week, according to The Times of India. The agenda includes the Houthi attacks and pursuing political engagement with the Houthis instead of kinetic action, according to The Times of India. Under the pact, an armed attack on any one of the three countries is to be treated as an attack on all three. Pakistan’s foreign minister said that more than six other countries want to join the agreement, according to Middle East Eye.
Saudi warplanes carried out two airstrikes on the Saqayn district in Yemen’s northern province of Saada, according to Mehr News. There were no reports of casualties or damages, the outlet said.
The third aircraft carrier the United States is deploying to the waters around Iran is the USS Theodore Roosevelt, whose strike group left its San Diego base on Sunday, followed a day later by the Makin Island Marine Expeditionary Force with more than 2,000 Marines. By the end of November, three aircraft carriers and two amphibious groups will be positioned around Iran, a US official told Al Jazeera. The Pentagon is adding Marine Corps ships, up to 10,000 troops, according to The Wall Street Journal.
El Al canceled two rescue flights scheduled for Friday (LY974-1, LY972) because Israeli airlines’ landing permits were revoked, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) did not grant landing permission for the two special flights meant to bring stranded Israelis home. The rescue flights were organized after the UAE canceled all flights to Israel, following an attack by a copilot on a flydubai route to Ben Gurion Airport on Wednesday, according to The Times of Israel.
Yemen’s army said it killed more than 80 Houthi fighters in 24 hours of fighting south of Marib, according to Arab News. A Middle East Eye live blog item reports at least 80 dead in fighting between Houthis and pro-government forces in the last 24 hours.
Three tankers linked to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) struck in the Strait of Hormuz were already on the waterway non-compliance list, according to Mehr News. The vessels were identified as Al Ruwais, Sinbad and Mersin Prosperity, according to Al Bawaba.
The United States deployed two additional Patriot air defense batteries to protect oil and gas facilities in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, according to TASS, citing an Axios report. According to that report, Washington wants to assure its allies that it will protect their key energy sites in case a decision is made to resume a full-fledged operation against Iran.
US President Donald Trump said it was “possible” voters could punish Republican candidates in the upcoming midterm elections over the war on Iran, according to Middle East Eye. Asked by reporters whether it was acceptable for Iran to have a nuclear weapon, Trump said that “100 percent of the people say no, including worldwide”.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a post on X that Iran loaded no crude oil onto tankers in September, according to Middle East Eye. The United States has blockaded Iranian ports since April to try to thwart Iranian exports, the most profitable of which is oil. Tanker-tracking data shows Iran loaded no new crude oil in September, according to Times Now.
A preliminary Saudi investigation into the emergency landing of a Flydubai flight found that the captain was assaulted by his co-pilot, the Interior Ministry said. Flight FZ1073, from Dubai to Tel Aviv, diverted to Tabuk airport with 174 passengers and eight crew members on board and arrived “safely” at 9:45am local time (06:45 GMT).
An oil supertanker is in flames in the Strait of Hormuz after it was hit by a missile, Iran’s Fars news agency reported, in an account published by Middle East Eye. The attack took place eight kilometres off the coast of Oman, Fars reported, without attributing a perpetrator.
The Saudi-led coalition delivered new strikes on Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, and the provinces of Amran, Saada and Taiz, according to the Houthi movement Ansar Allah, citing the Houthi-controlled SABA news agency, in a text published by TASS. Explosions were heard in Sanaa, Houthis and AFP said. No information on casualties or damage is available at this point.
The Pentagon will deploy a third aircraft carrier strike group and additional Marine Corps ships to the Middle East, increasing the US military presence in the region by another 9,000 to 10,000 servicemen, The Wall Street Journal reported, in a text published by TASS. The ships, jet fighters, Marines and sailors will arrive in the region by the end of November, the officials said. The aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt departed San Diego on September 27 as part of a scheduled deployment, according to TASS.
Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry said the flydubai co-pilot was transferred to the United Arab Emirates, according to The Hindu. In the same report, asked whether the United States would retaliate against Tehran if Iran was behind the attack, President Donald Trump said Iran would be hit hard: “Oh they'll be hit, very hard, don't worry.”
The Saudi-led coalition accused the Iran-backed Houthis of carrying out a drone attack on the Taibah power distribution station in Medina on Tuesday, according to Al Arabiya. Coalition spokesman Brig. Gen. Turki al-Maliki said the Houthis targeted the Taibah station on Tuesday, damaging a transformer and knocking it out of service. The Houthis deny the claim, according to Al Jazeera.
Crude oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz have largely returned to levels seen before the Iran war, and about 40% of the region’s crude is now transported without transiting the strait, compared with 17% before the war, through Saudi and Emirati pipelines, according to The Guardian. At least 16.5 million barrels per day (bpd) left the region in September, equalling the pre-war average, excluding Iran, according to the global trade intelligence firm Kpler.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy announced it had captured a US Remus 600 unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) operating in the Strait of Hormuz for espionage. According to the Tehran Times, it is the second US underwater drone captured in less than a month, while Washington keeps its bid to reopen the passage. The IRGC warned that the Strait of Hormuz remains closed and said it will continue confronting what it describes as dangerous movements.
The United States (US) does not rule out carrying out strikes on Iraq if it sees a threat on Iraqi territory, even after the official end of its operation in the country, according to Sputnik Globe, citing The Washington Post. US forces will be redeployed from Iraq to Jordan to focus on combating ISIS cells in Syria.
Iran has received an official US response to its latest proposal to end the seven-month war, according to Iranian officials cited by the Hindustan Times. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi presented the response to President Masoud Pezeshkian at a Cabinet meeting, according to government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani, who spoke to the state-run IRNA news agency. Araghchi proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz within a week if the US suspended its blockade of Iranian ports, released frozen Iranian assets and waived sanctions on Iranian oil sales.
Three Liberian-flagged oil tankers were struck by unknown projectiles while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, according to Marisks, cited by Reuters. The vessels were moving through the strait with their Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponders turned off to avoid detection, according to a Marisks report released on Wednesday, and the tanker Al Ruwais had conducted a ship-to-ship transfer off Sohar, Oman, in late September to discharge diesel, according to Kpler data, according to Middle East Online.
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) said it has redirected 125 commercial vessels since mid-July, when the country resumed its naval blockade against Iran, according to TASS. The command said its forces redirected the vessels “to ensure strict compliance,” in a tally dated September 30. The aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush is operating in the Arabian Sea in support of the blockade, according to Iran International, citing CENTCOM. President Donald Trump said the United States has “total control” of the Strait of Hormuz, a situation he described as “always subject to change”.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday rejected UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham's claim that Iran played a role in a suspected attempted attack on the Royal Air Force (RAF) base at Fairford, used by the United States in its war on Iran, according to Middle East Eye.
Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman called British Defense Secretary Wes Streeting on Wednesday, and the two reviewed the two countries' strategic defense relations and discussed joint efforts to address regional issues, according to the Saudi Gazette.
The secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, warned the United Arab Emirates against hosting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying that doing so would not have positive consequences, according to the state-run Mehr News. In a post in Arabic on X, Rezaei said that just as hosting US military bases had not brought security to the UAE, hosting the “Gaza butcher” would not have positive consequences either.
Iran’s conditions for fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz [include an end to US military and economic pressure, the release of frozen or restricted assets and agreement on a safe shipping route], according to the Anadolu Agency. The proposal was conveyed to Washington through Qatar, and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has received the US response, government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani confirmed on Wednesday. President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran is making every possible effort to ensure the success of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, and Iran says the Strait of Hormuz will not fully reopen until its conditions are met and US commitments implemented. According to the Hindustan Times, the government of Donald Trump had publicly rejected Tehran’s latest proposal to end the war, which the outlet describes as being in its seventh month.
Three vessels were struck by unknown projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz on September 29, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said, according to TASS. The vessels include a crude oil tanker and a liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker, according to the Hindustan Times, which also cites UKMTO. There are currently no reports of casualties, and the ships’ names and ports of registry were not reported.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned on Tuesday the visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to Iran International. The UAE confirmed that Netanyahu was in the country on Sunday and met President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. According to Israel National News, Netanyahu and his wife visited the UAE on Sunday at the invitation of President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, and the visit focused on strengthening bilateral relations and addressing regional challenges.
Saudi Arabia appears to be mending fences with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to push back a Houthi offensive in Yemen that threatens the Saudi Red Sea oil export corridor, with drones already striking Riyadh, according to Middle East Eye. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hosted the Emirati vice president, Mansour bin Zayed, in Riyadh on Tuesday, in the most visible reconciliation effort after disputes over Sudan, Yemen and Somaliland.
The United States (US) Treasury sanctioned ten individuals and companies accused of procuring weapons and parts for Iran’s military, with representatives and technology firms based in China, Pakistan, Türkiye and Saudi Arabia among those accused. Three of the sanctioned entities were located in Iran. The Treasury said the action further degrades the Iranian regime’s ability to reconstitute its weapons programs and increases the costs for those who choose to aid Tehran’s military procurement efforts. The sanctions were undertaken as part of Operation Economic Outcast, a Treasury Department effort to further restrict Iran’s access to global markets.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said a vessel was hit by an apparent projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Monday evening, causing a fire, according to Middle East Eye. According to Mehr News, the fire was extinguished, the crew was safe and the vessel continued its journey. The UKMTO said there was no reported environmental impact and that the extent of damage to the vessel was still being assessed.
The spokesperson for Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Al-Ansari, said the prolongation of the armed conflict between the United States and Iran in the Middle East and regional instability carry grave consequences for the international economy, according to TASS. Al-Ansari added that the region provides the world with energy products and also with items important to international food security, such as urea, and to industry, such as helium, petrochemicals and aluminium.
The speaker of Iran’s parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, reportedly said in a public video conference on Tuesday, responding to recent comments by US President Donald Trump about the Strait of Hormuz, that in a region where Iran cannot sell oil no one else will sell oil either, and that if Iran’s security is not guaranteed no infrastructure will remain safe, according to AFP, in a report published by the Hindustan Times.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he expects a formal answer on Tuesday from the United States (US) to Tehran’s proposal to open the Strait of Hormuz, according to France 24, citing Iranian state media. Araghchi said the current focus is solely on the Strait of Hormuz and the reopening depends on conditions communicated to the other side. US President Donald Trump called reports of an offer to Iran untrue and a hoax and said he offered nothing, according to the Hindustan Times.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan in Washington on September 28 to discuss regional security, including shipping safety in the Strait of Hormuz and the situation in Yemen, according to Al Jazeera. Rubio said they also discussed Iran, Gaza and Sudan, while the Saudi state agency SPA reported that the two discussed political and security developments in the region and the situation in Yemen.
Yemen’s Armed Forces claim they carried out 356 operations against Houthi targets over the past day, according to the Middle East Eye. The army spokesman says there were 756 precision operations over 72 hours across several fronts, according to Arab News. The same spokesman claims that 2,316 Houthis were killed or wounded and four Iranian drone and missile experts were killed in Taiz, also according to Arab News.
Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan arrived in Washington on Monday for talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to Reuters. Rubio and Faisal met at the State Department as Saudi Arabia seeks US backing for its military campaign against the Houthis, according to Al-Monitor. The visit comes two days after Saudi Arabia said it intercepted multiple Houthi drones and ballistic missiles, also according to Al-Monitor.
US and Iranian officials spoke separately with mediators on Monday in a renewed effort to end seven months of war, according to Reuters, in a text republished by The Hindu. Iran’s seven-day plan envisages an end to all hostilities in Iran and Lebanon and the unfreezing of billions of dollars’ worth of Iranian assets, according to the same text. US President Donald Trump said on Saturday he had rejected Iran’s proposal, saying Iran wanted a swift agreement because of the crippling economic pressure.
Saudi Arabia’s defence minister invited UAE Vice President Mansour bin Zayed to the kingdom for a face-to-face meeting on Tuesday, according to Saudi state media. In July, top officials and ministers in both countries posted messages about friendship and unity on social media, signalling a rapprochement months after a public fallout over Yemen, according to Middle East Eye.
US President Donald Trump denied offering Iran sanctions relief and the release of frozen funds in exchange for nuclear concessions. On Truth Social, he said he offered nothing and called the Axios report a hoax, Middle East Eye reported. The account Trump is rebutting came from journalist Barak Ravid, who wrote on X that the president was ready to ease sanctions and unfreeze Iranian assets in exchange for Tehran meeting US demands on its nuclear program, citing an unnamed US official, according to TASS.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) confirmed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi, according to Al Jazeera. The official WAM news agency said the two sides discussed bilateral relations between the UAE and Israel and ways to strengthen and develop them.
Oil pushed higher as Iran and the US appeared far apart on a new ceasefire deal for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, according to Bloomberg, in a text republished by the Hindustan Times. Brent was near $108 a barrel, climbing more than 3%, after discussions between the two sides appeared to hit fresh snags.
Iran’s supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei said the United States would be forced to leave West Asia after suffering “painful blows”, in a statement carried by state television, according to AFP, in a text republished by The Hindu. In a written statement attributed to him, Khamenei said that “today, having suffered painful blows at the hands of valiant fighters and the guardians of the Strait of Hormuz, they [the enemies] do not venture beyond the Arabian Sea”, according to The Hindu. Khamenei, who has not been seen in public since the start of the war in late February, made the remarks despite attempts to revive talks aimed at ending the fighting, Middle East Eye noted.
Qatari mediators are likely to hold talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in New York and separately with the US side on Monday or Tuesday, an official briefed on the negotiations told Reuters, in a text republished by The Business Standard. The semiofficial ISNA news agency later confirmed that Araghchi would meet the mediators on Monday morning, New York time, also in The Business Standard report. The talks are expected to focus on an amended version of a seven-day proposal Iran presented last week on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, according to Reuters.
QatarEnergy extended force majeure notices and will not be able to deliver liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes to Italian utility Edison or some Asian clients while the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, according to Reuters. Edison said QatarEnergy would cancel a further six cargoes, taking the total undelivered shipments to 35. Qatar exported just 18 LNG cargoes to end-August, down from 509 in the same period last year, according to data intelligence firm ICIS.
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) rejected the claim that Iran fully controls the Strait of Hormuz, saying in a post on X that such claims “are false” and that Iran “has no navy because American forces sank it”. According to CENTCOM, more than 1 billion barrels of oil have recently passed through the strait, demonstrating that Iran does not control the waterway, Middle East Eye reported.
Bessent said Iran’s oil shipments have been successfully blocked by the US and the West and that the country’s last batch, of about 15 million barrels, is on its way to China. He told Fox News that Iran will make its final oil deliveries to China and that, after that, it will have nothing to trade for anything, probably within the next two weeks.
Iran's UN delegation has no plans for negotiations, even as US President Donald Trump says he expects talks to resume soon, according to The Hindu. Trump told Axios on Sunday that he expected talks to resume soon, a day after he rejected Tehran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days.
The chief of Iran's Army Force for Coordination Affairs says that both sides of the strategic Strait of Hormuz are under the control of the country's Armed Forces, according to Mehr News.
US President Donald Trump rejected an Iranian offer of a seven-day truce and of reopening the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Middle East Eye, and Brent climbed back above $106 a barrel. Brent futures rose more than 1% to $105.64 a barrel, with West Texas Intermediate (WTI) at $93.11, according to the Mehr News Agency. Despite the rejection, Trump said he expects negotiations to resume, but said Tehran “overplayed their hand,” still according to the Middle East Eye.
Eight US Marines were injured two weeks ago when an Iranian cruise missile struck the ship they were operating on in the Strait of Hormuz, according to three US officials. The Marines were not seriously injured, but they sustained smoke inhalation and possibly traumatic brain injuries, with concussion symptoms such as headaches, the officials said.
The spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, General Hossein Mohebbi, said the Strait of Hormuz is a hunting ground for the IRGC Navy against US underwater vehicles and described the latest capture as both a technological and intelligence trophy, according to the Mehr News Agency. According to Mohebbi, the second prey captured is an Mk 18 Mod 2 Kingfish, an advanced autonomous underwater vehicle with sonar and precise navigation, worth several million dollars.
Saudi Arabia is exporting 6 million barrels per day of crude oil in September, equivalent to the country’s monthly average in 2025, according to CNBC, with data from Kpler. Riyadh ramped up exports even after closing the critical East–West oil pipeline due to damage sustained in a drone attack, according to CNBC. Flows through Hormuz reached a seven-day average of 13.2 million barrels per day, compared with around 17 million before the Iran war, according to Kpler, via CNBC.
Tehran says it is fully prepared for the war to resume, while the US rejects the drone claim on social media, according to the Al Jazeera liveblog.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran is ready to help facilitate an agreement between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, according to The Diplomatic Insight. In remarks to Al Jazeera, he denied Iranian involvement in the conflict and said that what is happening in Yemen is not linked to Iran, according to the Times of India.
A source close to Iran’s delegation to the United Nations (UN) said there is no plan for a new round of negotiations with the United States in New York, according to the Mehr News, citing IRNA. The source said Iran’s positions were conveyed to the United States last Tuesday through the Qatari mediator and that Tehran is awaiting the American side’s response. US President Donald Trump told Axios he expects more talks with Iran as soon as this week and that Tehran wants a deal, according to RT. Trump also confirmed that the resumption of full-scale hostilities with Iran remains on the table.
Israeli media reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had made an unannounced visit to the United Arab Emirates to meet with the country’s leader, according to the Middle East Eye. TV channels 12 and KAN and the newspapers Haaretz and The Jerusalem Post said it was a one-day visit to meet President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Two sources confirmed that Netanyahu flew to Abu Dhabi on a private plane Sunday morning and returned to Israel that evening, according to the World Israel News, citing Channel 12. The Prime Minister’s Office declined to disclose further details about the meeting.
US President Donald Trump said he expected more talks with Iran this week, according to Business Upturn, citing Axios. Trump also said Iran “overplayed their hand”. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran had received an initial US reaction and was still waiting for mediators to convey Washington’s definitive position.
Iran stood firm on Sunday on the conditions of its plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, despite US President Donald Trump's rejection of the proposal. The plan calls for a cessation of all hostilities in West Asia, including in Lebanon, according to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, and a return to the conditions of the ceasefire deal that fell apart a few months ago. Trump said in an interview with Axios that the United States will hold another round of talks with Iran next week. Araghchi said the country is fully prepared for the war to be resumed, including an apocalyptic war, and at the same time ready for diplomacy.
US Central Command denied the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claim to have captured an American underwater drone in the Strait of Hormuz, according to Middle East Eye. Spokesperson Tim Hawkins said the US maintains “positive control of all of our operational drone assets” and called the claim “clearly desperate”. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran is prepared for a renewed conflict with the US while keeping the door open for diplomacy, after President Donald Trump rejected an Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to Sputnik Globe. Araghchi wrote that “our conditions are clear, and any measure to reopen the Strait of Hormuz depends on their fulfilment” and that “only a negotiated solution can pull the parties out of this impasse”, according to G1. Trump told Axios he expects American negotiators to hold more talks with Iran this week, according to Middle East Eye. In Bandar Abbas, Basij forces and residents held a parade of the Janfada drill to show preparedness against potential enemy aggression, according to Mehr News.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy announced the capture of a Remus 600, a US-made unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) the force called “terrorist”, in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Mehr News Agency. According to the force, it is the second vehicle of its kind seized in September 2026: on September 8, 2026 it had announced the interception and capture of another advanced US unmanned underwater vehicle near the entrance to the strait. Xinhua also reported the IRGC announcement, made on Sunday, September 27, 2026, about the capture of another “advanced smart” unmanned underwater vehicle belonging to the US Army in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said all his meetings on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly focused on presenting Tehran’s conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, according to Mehr News. He said the terms were presented in full to mediators, who conveyed them to the American side, prompting an initial reaction from the US president, though no further response has come back through the mediators.
US-led coalition forces are scheduled to withdraw from facilities in Iraq’s Kurdistan region by September 30, 2026, under an agreement between Baghdad and Washington to wind down the coalition mission, according to Middle East Eye. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi told the United Nations (UN) General Assembly on Friday, September 25, 2026, that the end of the international coalition’s mission would move Iraq’s relationship with its strategic partners from military cooperation to economic and development cooperation. Kurdistan region’s Interior Minister Rebar Ahmed Khalid told Anadolu Agency that coalition forces are withdrawing from Iraq, including its Kurdish region, on a daily basis and are expected to complete the pullout by the end of September 2026.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned it will attack US warships, even those in the Indian Ocean, if Washington launches a new war against Iran, according to Middle East Eye. The threat came after Donald Trump posted an image showing the Strait of Hormuz circled and labelled “Trump Strait”, hours after Iran said it had presented a seven-day plan to reopen the waterway.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan used his address at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to call for serious international cooperation to protect freedom of navigation and said the regional security framework should be “comprehensive”, according to Middle East Eye. He also supported initiatives aimed at de-escalation, particularly efforts by Qatar and Pakistan, saying they can help restore regional stability.
Iran’s Strait of Hormuz Administration warned that ships using unauthorised routes through the strait would face serious restrictions, according to Al Jazeera Arabic, cited by Middle East Eye. The warning came after Donald Trump said on Saturday that he had rejected the Iranian proposal to reopen the strait and end the Iran war.
Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi called at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on all parties to the Middle East conflict to exercise restraint and pursue dialogue, hours after Donald Trump rejected Iran’s seven-day truce proposal. In the same address, Oman reaffirmed its commitment to continue efforts to secure navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar told the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) that a “serial practitioner of terrorism” had misrepresented facts the previous day, in an apparent reference to Pakistan. Jaishankar said arguments invoked to normalise terrorism and claim immunity from its consequences would not stand. Turning to the conflict in the Gulf, he said attacks on commercial ships and seafarers in international waters were “simply unacceptable”.
Donald Trump said on Saturday that he rejected Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days. He said he “would also like to make a deal”, but that this one would not be acceptable, and said Iranians want the deal immediately because they are losing badly. Iran offered this week to reopen the strait and resume talks on its nuclear programme within seven days, and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said at the UN General Assembly that normal maritime passage can be restored within seven days if the necessary conditions are met, with the choice resting with the United States.
Chinese Vice President Han Zheng urged the United Nations General Assembly to respect the sovereignty and security of countries in the Middle East, including the Gulf and called on the “relevant country” to immediately stop threatening Cuba with force and immediately and completely lift the blockade and sanctions against the island. The speech did not name the United States, in contrast with Xi Jinping’s reception at the White House days earlier.
Donald Trump rejected Iran’s offer of a seven-day ceasefire to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to The Guardian. The rejection was reported by The Wall Street Journal based on unnamed U.S. officials. The plan called for releasing $12 billion in frozen Iranian assets, lifting sanctions on Iranian oil and ending the naval blockade on the country’s ports, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters. By Saturday, the United States had still made no public response, though reports indicated Trump had rejected the proposal.
The chiefs of the defence forces and general staffs of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye met in Riyadh on Friday, September 25, according to a statement by the army, and discussed expanding intelligence sharing, military coordination and capability integration within the Mecca defence pact. Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, said at the United Nations (UN) that further attacks on the holy city of Mecca would be a “red line” for Islamabad. The air defence of the Saudi-led coalition intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis toward Khamis Mushait, according to the coalition’s official spokesperson, Brigadier General Turki al-Maliki.
A spokesman for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi, said the country’s advanced missiles are capable of destroying the multilayered air defense systems of the United States, according to the Mehr news agency. Mohebbi also said that the United States, despite having the world’s largest navy, was unable to keep the Strait of Hormuz open even for a few hours. According to him, only oil tankers of Iran’s trading partners are permitted to pass through the strait, and only with Tehran’s permission.
Yemen’s government forces say they have retaken areas and higher ground in the southern Taiz governorate, including Jabal Bazel, which places Houthi supply lines within target reach. The claim comes from the Yemeni government itself. There was no immediate comment from the Houthis on the government accounts.
The total number of U.S. troops wounded in the war against Iran reached 861, according to the Pentagon’s public casualty database (DCAS). The Pentagon added 37 names to the list — 29 sailors and eight Marines — and provided no public explanation of when or how those service members were wounded, according to Sputnik Globe, reporting on The Washington Post.
Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, said any threat to the holy sites of Islam in Saudi Arabia is a “red line” and that the country stands “shoulder to shoulder” with Riyadh, according to Arab News Pakistan. Sharif condemned what he called a “dastardly and heinous” attempted drone attack on Mecca, and Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the defence agreement with Saudi Arabia and Turkey applies, according to The Statesman.
Saudi Arabia’s grand mufti, Saleh bin Fawzan Al-Fawzan, gave the war against Yemen’s Houthis an explicit religious framing: he addressed troops on the front line telling them to be ready to sacrifice their lives, citing Quranic verses and sayings of the prophet Muhammad on sacrifice, and prayed for the group’s “complete defeat,” Ynet News reports, which also notes that Saudi state television aired footage of what authorities described as a Houthi attack on a mosque in the kingdom’s south. Riyadh accuses the group of attempting to strike Mecca, and the Houthis reject the accusation.
The chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, called on Yemenis on Friday, 25 September 2026, to mobilize and join the armed forces against the Houthis, according to Al Arabiya English. He also offered a future general amnesty to Houthi fighters and affiliates who leave the group starting 26 September, according to Arab News.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Iran will show no flexibility over its nuclear programme even if the United States accepts its proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which calls for lifting the naval blockade on Iranian ports, in a report carried by Middle East Eye. The same official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the waterway would remain closed until “all of Iran’s conditions” are met by Washington.
India and Liberia announced the creation of a “group of friends” on the safety and security of shipping and seafarers, on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), according to The Hindu. India’s Minister of External Affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, called attacks on civilian shipping “simply indefensible”, cited repeated attacks in the Gulf, the Red Sea and surrounding waters, and pointed to two recent cases: an attack two days earlier on an Antigua and Barbuda-flagged bulk carrier in the Gulf of Oman that killed an Indian sailor, and an attack ten days earlier on a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz that left a crew member missing, according to Firstpost.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi briefed his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on the state of Iran’s negotiations and agreements with Oman to ensure safe navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, according to TASS. According to Moscow, the two agreed that only a diplomatic settlement can end tension in the Middle East, The Jerusalem Post reports, citing Reuters.
Imagery and intelligence support from Chinese groups has helped Iran threaten ships in the Strait of Hormuz and launch precision strikes on U.S. military bases in the Middle East, CNN reports, citing sources the network does not identify. The imagery allowed Iran to hit a U.S. base in Jordan in July 2026, a strike that killed three American service members with a level of precision that U.S. officials believe was beyond Iran’s capabilities. In May 2026, the U.S. government sanctioned three Chinese satellite companies for providing imagery that, according to Washington, “enables Iran’s military strikes against U.S. forces in the Middle East.”
Iran’s seven-day roadmap to end the war with the United States provides for an end to hostilities on all fronts, the release of at least US$ 12 billion in frozen assets, relief from sanctions on Iranian oil and the lifting of the naval blockade, with the Strait of Hormuz reopening on the seventh day, Al Jazeera reports. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the plan was delivered to Washington through intermediaries and that a deal should be sealed before the U.S. midterm elections, he told Al Jazeera.
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly and backed a diplomatic way out of the Gulf crisis, Sputnik Globe reports, citing a Russian Foreign Ministry statement. The statement blames the United States and Israel for the crisis and says there is no alternative to a diplomatic settlement, as the Jerusalem Post notes on the meeting.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband in New York on the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly, Mehr News Agency reports. Miliband said the United Kingdom “will not tolerate intimidation, threats or hostile activity on UK soil” and urged de-escalation and diplomacy instead of prolonging the war, stressing the importance of reopening the Strait of Hormuz, according to the BBC. Senior Iranian officials say Washington has four to five days to respond to Tehran’s conditions for reopening the strait, according to The Guardian.
Ship-to-ship oil transfers in the Gulf of Oman have reached their limits after Saudi Arabia diverted exports from the Red Sea, according to Reuters via The Hindu. Saudi crude exports via the Strait of Hormuz were on track to rebound to 3.6 million barrels per day (bpd) in September, up from about 900,000 bpd in August, according to data from analytics firm Kpler cited in the report. State-run Saudi Aramco has sold more than 60 million barrels for transfer off Sohar, Oman, this month and next, since its East–West Pipeline was attacked on September 13.
Yemen’s Houthis said on Thursday, September 24, 2026, that they had launched missiles and drones at a “sensitive target” in Riyadh and at Aramco facilities in the Red Sea city of Yanbu, according to Al Jazeera; oil rose the same day: Brent futures for November ended above US$106.50 a barrel, after earlier exceeding US$108 and settled at US$106.60, up US$3.52, or 3.4%, according to The Vibes; according to Middle East Eye, vessel transits in the Strait of Hormuz fell to nine on Thursday, from 14 the day before and a 10-day average of about 18, preliminary ship-tracking data showed.
Iran has conveyed to mediators its conditions for returning to negotiations to end the war, and Tehran is pressing for the United States to return to the memorandum of understanding (MoU) before November’s midterm elections. Iran’s security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, said he sent the conditions through Qatar, including an end to the war on all fronts and an end to the naval blockade. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran wants the Americans back in the memorandum before the midterms. The New York Times reported that Iran proposed a seven-day plan to end the war.
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan will hold an urgent meeting of their chiefs of staff, announced by the Saudi foreign ministry, to discuss ways to back Riyadh in the escalation with Yemen’s Houthis. The barrage of ballistic missiles and drones against Saudi targets, which included the holy city of Mecca, is testing the mutual defence pact signed in August with Turkey and Pakistan. The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement states that an armed attack against one of the three countries is considered an attack against all of them.
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, said on Thursday, 24 September 2026, that Tehran had given the United States a proposal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restart talks on ending the war within seven days. The text has not been released. Regional sources cited by The National describe a regionwide ceasefire of up to 60 days, a phased reopening of the Strait and an end to the US blockade. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a Fox News interview that the choice rests with Washington: “It’s America that must choose whether it wants to end this or not.”
The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted six Houthi ballistic missiles on Thursday, 24 September 2026, thwarting attacks on Taif and Yanbu, after warnings were issued for several regions of the kingdom, including Mecca. French President Emmanuel Macron said France planned to send “military assets, meaning soldiers, radars and defence systems to protect” the Red Sea oil terminal of Yanbu.
During the address that opened the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, US President Donald Trump said he would decide between a deal with Iran and ‘annihilating the Islamic Republic’; as he began speaking about US military operations, Iran’s delegation walked out of the hall, leaving a single lower-level staff member behind, according to Al Jazeera. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei confirmed the partial walkout and told the Iranian state news agency IRNA that one diplomat from Iran’s mission stayed in the room because the delegation attended at foreign minister level, according to ANI. Baghaei said the US administration turns the Assembly into a stage for military threats that are ‘absolutely illegal, contrary to international law and diplomatic custom’, and called the threat of a military attack ‘an admission of committing international crimes’. Iranian state broadcaster IRIB, cited by Al Jazeera, reported that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accepted a meeting requested by US envoy Steve Witkoff to restate Iran’s conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz: an immediate end to the naval blockade, the release of frozen Iranian assets and an end to the war. Al Jazeera notes that accounts differ over whether the two delegations met directly.
Saudi Arabia’s Ras Tanura terminal recorded its busiest loading day since before the war on September 21, 2026, as six very large crude carriers loaded close to 12 million barrels at Ras Tanura and Juaymah, according to shipping analytics firm Kpler, as reported by Middle East Eye. The surge followed disruption to Aramco’s East-West pipeline, which lets Saudi crude reach the Red Sea coast without passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Kpler said some of the six vessels had already been flagged over the previous six weeks for undeclared ship-to-ship transfers or unusual port calls, which the firm says points to a longer-running pattern of changing vessel behaviour.
Iran’s state news agency, the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), said an explosion was heard near Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz on the night of Tuesday, 22 September 2026, and that the cause and the impact were not immediately clear, according to Middle East Eye, which is covering the case in a live blog. No other source has confirmed the explosion so far.
US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday, 22 September 2026, that Washington and Tehran are moving toward a settlement, hours after repeating at the UN General Assembly his threat to annihilate Iran if no deal is reached: “They want to talk to us. They have been talking to us, even today they’ve been talking to us, and the relationship is developing. But we can’t let them — and they understand that — we can’t let them have a nuclear weapon,” he said after meeting British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, according to Reuters, in a dispatch carried by Al-Monitor. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran could reopen the Strait of Hormuz to Gulf shipping within seven days if the United States eases military pressure and lifts its blockade of Iranian ports, and that Tehran’s latest proposal was conveyed to Washington through mediators last week. “The UN General Assembly is a golden opportunity for the US to return to diplomacy,” the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said. Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who headed the negotiating team in earlier talks, warned that “Trump must understand that he cannot impose his power on the Iranian people and its armed forces”. Trump also hosted the leaders of the six Arab Gulf states (Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) on the same day, telling the meeting there is “a lot of momentum” for a deal, according to TASS: “We’ve been mediating for a while, but I think there’s a lot of momentum for them to make a deal.” According to sources cited by Reuters, Saudi Arabia restarted operations at its East-West Pipeline and could resume exports from the Red Sea port of Yanbu within hours, at reduced volumes; the pipeline had been shut after attacks this month that Riyadh blamed on Iran-backed groups in Iraq.
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud on Tuesday, 22 September 2026, branded Yemen’s Houthis a “terrorist militia” and condemned the attempt to target Mecca, describing it as a “heinous crime” and “a provocation to Muslims around the world”, according to Al Jazeera and Dawn, which published the report by the French news agency AFP. He spoke at a cabinet meeting in Jeddah, recorded by the Saudi Press Agency, the kingdom’s official news agency: a rare intervention by the 90-year-old monarch, who has left day-to-day affairs to his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi Arabia says it intercepted a Houthi drone headed for Mecca on 15 September 2026, which Al Jazeera records as the first time a security alert had been activated in the city in nearly 10 years. Houthi leader Abdel-Malik al-Houthi denied the attack and called the Saudi accusation “a heinous lie”. Since then, Houthi missiles and drones have hit Saudi cities and energy infrastructure: the Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted a ballistic missile fired at Riyadh on 19 September 2026, sending a dark column of smoke from a fuel storage area at King Khalid International Airport.
Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, said on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at the 81st United Nations (UN) General Assembly that the Gulf is going through “one of the most dangerous phases” because of the US-Israeli war on Iran, and argued the crisis can be resolved through diplomacy, with the Strait of Hormuz reopened to navigation, according to Al Jazeera. He said the war is the “cumulative result of years” of postponing diplomatic solutions and called for a “regional system of collective security”, saying that without one “it has become possible for a war to erupt”. Sheikh Tamim called Israel’s expansion in the occupied West Bank “aggression” and said “what has transpired in Gaza is genocide in every sense of the word”.
The executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol, said on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at an energy forum organised by Foreign Policy magazine that Europe faces a “very harsh winter”, possibly one of the hardest in recent years, with gas storage at historically low levels, according to the TASS news agency. Birol said European countries have decided to phase out Russian gas completely by 2027 and can no longer receive gas from the United Arab Emirates and Qatar because of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, pushing them to seek supply from the United States and Norway. European storage stood at 69% of capacity on September 17, 2026, below the 85% five-year average for the season, according to Reuters, which cites industry body Gas Infrastructure Europe.
The foreign ministers of Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan said in a joint statement on Tuesday, 22 September 2026 that they affirmed Saudi Arabia’s right to defend itself in line with international law and stressed the need to preserve the safety of navigation in the region, amid escalating attacks by Yemen’s Houthis, as reported by Reuters and published by Middle East Eye and the Times of India. The four ministers met on the sidelines of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York, voiced “deep concern” over the conflicts in the region, said dialogue and diplomacy were the only path to a sustainable solution and backed Yemen’s government in its efforts towards stability and peace. The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, signed on 7 August 2026 by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan, states that an armed attack against any one of the three countries will be treated as an attack against all, according to the BBC.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Tuesday, 22 September 2026, that Iran can reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days if the United States eases military pressure and lifts its blockade on Iranian ports. The official said the proposal was delivered to Washington through mediators on 16 September and that the Iranian delegation in New York has authority to revive diplomacy during the United Nations General Assembly; President Masoud Pezeshkian will not meet Donald Trump. The account comes from a single source speaking on condition of anonymity, and the US government had not confirmed the proposal at the time of publication.
Saudi Arabia restarted its East–West pipeline and could resume exports from the Red Sea port of Yanbu later on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, according to Reuters, which spoke to three sources briefed on the matter; the line is pumping at a low rate. The 1,200-kilometre pipeline runs from Abqaiq to Yanbu and lets the kingdom move crude without passing through the Strait of Hormuz. It had been shut after drone attacks launched from Iraq. Saudi Arabia’s Energy Ministry said on 11 September that the conduit was halted “as a precautionary measure” after “multiple attacks” and that there were injuries, according to the state Saudi Press Agency; the following day the Foreign Ministry condemned the attacks and said the kingdom chose not to respond immediately, at the request of the Iraqi prime minister, according to the agency. Baghdad dismissed a military commander and opened an investigation after admitting the drones came from one of its provinces bordering Iran, according to BBC News.
Houthi fighters are pushing to seize the Kahboub Mountains in the provinces of Taiz and Lahij, which separate the Red Sea coast from the government-held south of Yemen, according to five Yemeni military sources cited by Reuters on Monday, September 21. Fighting has centred on the outskirts of the remote mountain district of Al-Wazi’iyah in Taiz and on Ras al-Ara on the Indian Ocean coast, between the mouth of the Red Sea that the group seized last week and the government base in Aden; the aim is to protect the rear of Houthi forces around the Bab al-Mandab Strait and open new fronts, the sources said. Situation Report No. 4 from the World Health Organization (WHO) office in Yemen, issued on September 20, records 674 deaths and 2,998 injuries from August 6 to September 18, and 122,297 people displaced — in 17,852 families, through September 15, across eight governorates — citing Yemen’s Executive Unit for the Management of IDP Camps. The AFP news agency, citing Houthi-affiliated al-Masirah TV, reported that Saudi strikes killed six people in Mocha, including two children and a woman; Saudi Arabia has not commented.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, arrived in New York on Monday, September 21, to lead Iran’s diplomatic delegation at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. Araghchi is the highest-ranking Iranian official to enter the United States since the war began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran in February, according to Arab News and the Indian Express. He left Iran on Sunday evening with a stopover in Qatar and spoke by phone with UN Secretary-General António Guterres, according to Iranian state television. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei wrote on X that the minister heads “a diplomatic delegation” at the assembly. Before departing, Araghchi told Iranian journalists his main objective is to use the platform to defend “the legitimacy, rights and interests of the Iranian people.” President Masoud Pezeshkian, due to address the assembly on Wednesday, September 23, left Tehran on Tuesday morning, according to the Mehr news agency; Iranian state media had reported that Washington refused visas to members of the delegation, including its communications team.
Donald Trump meets on Tuesday, September 22, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York with the leaders of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — to discuss the next steps in the war against Iran, according to Axios, which cited three sources familiar with the plans. Iraq and Jordan have been added to the list and Egypt may take part, according to Abu Dhabi’s The National. The meeting is expected to focus on US proposals for a postwar strategy, which the White House intends to finalize after November’s midterm elections, Axios reported. At the same panel attended by the UAE’s diplomatic adviser Anwar Gargash, US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz said Iran had shifted from arming Hezbollah to increasingly arming the Houthis with “very sophisticated” drones and cruise missiles; Gargash called for a “new mindset” toward Iran, saying the region’s future should also be discussed between Tehran and Arab states. US officials say Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has been granted a visa to address the assembly on Wednesday, September 23, and that no meeting with Trump is planned, according to ABC News.
G7 foreign ministers called on Iran on Monday, September 21, to end its arming and support of the Houthis in Yemen, which they described as a “dangerous pattern of escalation” that risked undermining international trade, and condemned the group’s “unacceptable continued strikes” in Yemen and against Saudi Arabia, according to Reuters. In a statement issued after a meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, the ministers of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States called on the Houthis to “immediately cease all military actions, all threats and attacks against civilian shipping” and to return to the political process in good faith. The statement came the same day the Houthi-run Saba news agency said Saudi-led coalition airstrikes killed at least six civilians, including two children and a woman, and wounded eight in Mokha, the Red Sea port city the Houthis captured on September 10, according to AFP and France 24; the toll has no independent confirmation.
The general debate of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly opens on Tuesday, September 22, in New York, with about 130 heads of state and government registered through September 28 under the theme “Restoring trust, managing transformation: a United Nations that delivers for all” and under the presidency of Bangladesh’s Khalilur Rahman, according to the UN. By tradition Brazil speaks first, with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, followed by US President Donald Trump; Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan speaks fourth, after King Abdullah II of Jordan, and French President Emmanuel Macron also addresses the hall on the first day, according to the Associated Press. Secretary-General António Guterres delivers his final opening address of a term that ends on December 31. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speak on Wednesday, September 23, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas speak the next day, Abbas by video, after Washington denied him a visa for a second consecutive year, according to the Associated Press. The Gulf war, artificial intelligence and climate change dominate the week.
Houthi-run al-Masirah television said Saudi warplanes struck a public market and a school in Dhubab district in southwestern Yemen on Monday, killing at least one person, according to China’s Xinhua news agency. Dhubab lies south of the Red Sea port of Mocha and near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, where the Houthis have seized coastal areas this month. Middle East Eye published footage released by the group that the Houthis say shows the strike; Saudi Arabia has not commented. Yemen’s Saudi-backed army says its air campaign along the same coastal strip targets Houthi fighters and equipment.
UK prime minister Andy Burnham said he has approved air-to-air refuelling support for Saudi jets to help counter the Houthis and keep Gulf oil flowing, his government’s first military deployment, according to The Guardian. He said he will use his first meeting with Donald Trump on Tuesday to press for de-escalation in the conflict with Iran. Britain already operates the Sky Sabre air defence system in Saudi Arabia, and the Houthis have advanced into areas adjacent to the Bab al-Mandab strait, an alternative route for Saudi oil exports.
Donald Trump’s administration has proposed investing $5 billion in a fund to rebuild Middle East energy infrastructure damaged in the war against Iran and to reduce reliance on the Strait of Hormuz for oil and gas transport, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited US and regional officials and documents. The proposal is under discussion with several countries, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and the initial US contribution would be matched by partner countries, according to Investing.com. Reuters, which carried the report, said it could not immediately verify the information. The newspaper says the seven-month conflict damaged pipelines and refineries in the region. For Investing.com, the announcement suggests Washington needs to repair both Gulf infrastructure and confidence in the US partnership, after the region’s energy assets became targets, and it does not immediately remove the geopolitical risk premium priced into oil.
President Donald Trump’s approval rating fell to 32 percent, the lowest of his political career, according to a four-day Reuters/Ipsos poll that closed on Sunday. The drop comes from Republican voters souring on the cost of living amid the war with Iran: 73 percent of Republicans approve of his job performance, down from 82 percent a week earlier, and only 17 percent approve of his handling of the cost of living. For the first time, Republicans who disapprove of his handling of that issue outnumber those who approve, 51 percent to 44 percent. The poll gathered 1,277 US adults and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points. Reuters attributes the deterioration to sharply higher gasoline and diesel prices since the war against Iran began in February; US congressional elections are set for 3 November.
Abu Dhabi developer Eagle Hills signed a commercial terms agreement with the Maldives government in Dubai on Monday for the Maldives Waterfront and Marina project in Ras Malé, with an investment envisioned at about $20 billion across phases, according to the Maldives’ SunOnline and Plus and the newspaper The National. The figure is the project’s total estimate; the company has not disclosed how much it will invest or on what timetable. The Maldives government estimates more than 54,000 jobs, and the project follows the $8.8 billion financial centre agreed with Dubai’s MBS Global Investments in May 2025.
The office of Grand Ayatollah Mousa Shobeiri Zanjani announced early on Monday that the cleric had died at 98, one of the leading sources of emulation (marja’) in Twelver Shia Islam and a figure of the Qom seminary, according to Mehr News and Press TV. He had been hospitalised in Qom for two days. Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq’s most senior Shia authority, sent a message of condolence, according to the Shafaqna news agency.
Paramount Skydance reached a settlement on Monday with California and eleven other states that had sued to block its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, Bloomberg and Reuters reported. According to Bloomberg, the states secured independent editorial boards for CBS and CNN; the Los Angeles Times reports the deal includes $1.5 billion in California production and a commitment not to sell either studio. On Thursday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) allowed foreign investors to hold 49.5 percent of the company’s equity — 38.5 points of it from sovereign funds in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi, which are putting in $24 billion with no voting rights.
Qatar’s prime minister and foreign minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, called on Sunday for a new “regional security framework” in the Middle East that includes Iran, saying the war against the Islamic Republic should be a “wake-up call” for the region, according to Middle East Eye and Al Jazeera. “Iran is our neighbour,” Al Thani said at the Qatar Economic Forum in New York. “We have to act together responsibly as a region and to make sure that we are having good relations with Iran. We are hoping this war is a wake-up call for everyone.” At a separate event on Sunday, Anwar Gargash, a diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates, said the region needed a “new mindset” and called for talks to end the war to include an “Iranian-Arab” element. The remarks came hours after reports, relayed by Middle East Eye, that Washington plans to resume direct strikes on Iran after months of reduced violence.
Saudi artillery struck populated areas of Saada province in northern Yemen, on the border with Saudi Arabia, and Houthi-run al-Masirah television said more than 130 missiles and shells were fired in 12 hours at the Az-Zahir and Haydan districts, according to Russia’s TASS news agency. The channel said the shelling was continuing. On the other side, al-Hadath television, aligned with Yemen’s government, reported that government forces retook several positions in southern and western Taiz province after clashes, according to the same agency. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said on Sunday that 28 airstrikes hit Taiz, Marib and Al-Jawf provinces in 24 hours, according to China’s Xinhua news agency; a government military source told Xinhua that government forces retook positions in western Taiz, with no change to the front lines. The Saada figures are a claim by the Houthi-controlled channel and have not been independently confirmed.
US President Donald Trump spoke by phone on Sunday with Yemeni President Rashad al-Alimi, who asked for American support against the Houthis, and made no direct pledge of military support, according to four people familiar with the call cited by The Hindu. The White House and Yemen’s information minister did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Trump has already rebuffed Saudi requests for military support against the group, according to Reuters, and says publicly that Washington is in contact with the Houthis, who say they will not target American shipping. The United States designates the movement as a terrorist organisation. The call came after the Houthis this month took areas along the Bab al-Mandeb strait.
The British agency United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said a tanker was struck by an “unknown projectile” as it entered the Strait of Hormuz on Monday; two crew members suffered minor injuries and the vessel continued to its next port under its own power, with no environmental impact reported. UKMTO did not release the vessel’s identity or the origin of the projectile and said authorities are investigating, according to the Associated Press (AP) and the Anadolu Agency. A bulletin from the UKMTO-linked Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC) lists four security incidents involving merchant vessels in the strait between September 14 and 18, three of them caused by unidentified projectiles.
Houthi fighters pushed on Monday to seize strategic heights in Yemen’s Taiz province to cut the Red Sea coast off from remaining forces of the Saudi-backed government, according to Reuters. The New York Times reported that Donald Trump’s administration prepared airstrikes against the group on Sunday at the request of the Saudi crown prince and that Trump called them off at the last minute as bombs were being loaded onto aircraft; Reuters could not verify the report and the United States Central Command did not respond to a request for comment. The Hindu reported, citing sources, that Trump did not pledge military support to Yemeni President Rashad al-Alimi in a phone call despite the request.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that “all the Iranian airlines will be shut down around the world” on September 23, under the threat of secondary sanctions on anyone providing them services: “If they land, you cannot provide them with fuel, you cannot provide them with landing services, you cannot sell them tickets or you will be knocked out of the dollar system,” he told CNBC. Bessent also said China has been “very engaged” in the economic pressure campaign against Iran, a day after meeting Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in New York, according to Reuters and The Hindu.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said 164 people were killed and 516 wounded in Yemen between September 13 and 18, 680 killed or wounded in the week, and that it has recorded 3,672 casualties since August 6, including 674 deaths and 2,998 injuries. Lahj province in the southwest accounted for 58 deaths and 226 injuries in six days. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said 129,438 people have been displaced across seven provinces and that 11,352 left their homes in just three days since September 18.
Kpler data cited by Reuters shows 22 tankers, mostly very large crude carriers, left the Strait of Hormuz in the week of September 13 carrying 42 million barrels of crude, with Saudi Arabia and Iraq accounting for 43% of the volume each. The VLCC Pinios was transferring 2 million barrels of Iraqi Basrah crude off Fujairah on Monday to another VLCC, the New Constant, which is expected to head to China. Houthi attacks on Aramco’s East-West pipeline have pushed the Saudi state firm to increase exports through the strait this month, and there have been no visible loadings from the Red Sea port of Yanbu since September 16.
Aircraft from the Saudi-led coalition struck the Hayfan district of Yemen’s Taiz province, Houthi-run al-Masirah television reported, according to Middle East Eye; the channel gave no details on casualties or damage. The strike comes as Houthi forces advance across western Yemen and claim control of much of the Red Sea coast, moving towards the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, one of the world’s central shipping routes. Senior Houthi official Mohamed al-Bukhaiti told The Associated Press (AP) that the group could fight on multiple fronts if foreign states join the conflict, and that its Red Sea operations target Saudi Arabia. He said US and other foreign vessels are not among the targets. The United Nations (UN) says hostilities in Yemen have displaced at least 125,000 people since the beginning of September, according to Middle East Eye.
Yemen’s Houthis said they fired ballistic and cruise missiles and drones at Riyadh and at Aramco facilities in Yanbu, on the Red Sea coast, according to the group’s military spokesman, Yahya al-Sarea. Saudi Arabia said it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile fired at the capital, without confirming further strikes or casualties, according to the BBC, the Associated Press (AP) and Al Jazeera. AP notes it was the first time Riyadh has been targeted since the escalation with the Iran-backed Houthis opened a new front in the Iran war.
The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported that the United States refused visas for the communications team of President Masoud Pezeshkian, which was due to accompany him to the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York, and Al Arabiya carried the report citing the state agency. Washington had approved the trip of the main delegation, led by Pezeshkian, last week, and US public radio National Public Radio (NPR) reports that those cleared will face strict limits on where they can go and what they can buy, enforced by diplomatic security. Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, stopped in Doha on his way to New York for consultations on the war, according to the Iranian state agency. The visa refusals come as the conflict nears the half-year mark and after the United States denied a visa to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian delegation, according to the BBC.
The US Virtual Embassy in Iran issued a security alert telling Americans not to travel to the country “for any reason” and those already there to leave immediately, citing possible flight cancellations, airspace closures and changing land border rules, according to Fox News and the ANI news agency. The notice recalls that Washington has no embassy or consular presence in Iran, with Switzerland acting as protecting power for US interests, and advises citizens to plan alternative means of communication. On Saturday, the State Department had already told Americans in the Middle East to exercise heightened vigilance and prepare for travel disruption, after new Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia. The alert repeats guidance issued several times this year and comes on the eve of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, with an Iranian proposal to end the war still unanswered by Washington and the US blockade of Iranian ports in place.
Qatar’s central bank governor, Bandar bin Mohammed bin Saoud Al Thani, told Bloomberg that around 17% of the country’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) export revenue has been lost to the regional conflict and that damage to gas infrastructure is “huge,” with two to three years needed for a full recovery, according to TASS. In March, QatarEnergy chief executive Saad al-Kaabi had put at up to five years the repairs to two of the 14 liquefaction trains hit by Iranian attacks (12.8 million tons a year of capacity, equivalent to about $20 billion in annual revenue).
Iran’s Statistical Center reported that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) fell 10.1 percent between 21 March and 20 June, the first quarter of the Persian calendar, compared with the same period a year earlier, according to AFP and Al Jazeera. Oil and gas extraction fell 26.4 percent, GDP excluding oil dropped 4.6 percent and twelve-month average inflation reached 69.9 percent, according to the official figures.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the British agency that monitors maritime traffic, reported that an oil tanker was “struck by an unknown projectile” during an inbound transit in the Strait of Hormuz and that two crew members suffered minor injuries, according to Mehr News, citing the agency; UKMTO advised vessels to transit with caution.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said on Monday that in the event of a new US attack it will introduce “new weapons with new capabilities” to the battlefield and hit targets not yet attacked, according to AP; the force says it is prepared for a “prolonged war”. Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said, according to the Tasnim news agency, that Tehran sent Qatar a list of seven conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and Mohsen Rezaei told Al Jazeera they include an end to the war on all fronts, the release of frozen funds and an end to the naval blockade.
The United States issued a travel warning and urged its citizens to leave Iran, according to The Hindu, and the Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) threatened “significant changes” if the US strikes again, according to Middle East Eye and TASS.
Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell threefold over the weekend, according to Reuters as cited by TASS, and a Reuters analysis describes shuttle transfers keeping oil moving “at a high cost”. The Hindustan Times reports a shortage of tankers pushing fuel prices up.
Iran’s military command says the United States is preparing to resume strikes on the country, according to Al Jazeera; the accusation comes from Tehran and has not been confirmed by Washington.
Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian paid tribute to the students killed in the Minab bombing, according to Mehr News, and Tehran accused France of “crocodile tears” for pressing Iran on freedoms while staying silent on the school attack, the Hindustan Times reports. Both outlets reproduce the Iranian position.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) says it downed another US MQ-1 drone over the Strait of Hormuz, according to Mehr News and Middle East Eye; the claim comes from the IRGC itself and has no independent confirmation.
Around a dozen vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, according to Middle East Eye and Mehr News; Reuters reports traffic remains far below normal, with ships moving through ‘in a trickle’.
QatarEnergy said the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz may delay some of its expansion projects, according to Middle East Eye and Reuters.
Riyadh confirms October production cut