A vessel was struck by an unknown projectile while leaving the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday morning, a day after a 60-day memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran expired. The UKMTO said it received a report that the attack damaged the engine room and caused a crew casualty, with the remaining crew being assisted by the Omani Coast Guard. The attack comes as president Donald Trump told reporters on Monday that Iran would not make the type of deal with his country that he thought was “necessary”.
Meanwhile, Iran said it would shift its policy from defensive to "fully offensive" due to the deadlock in efforts to agree a permanent end to its war with the US. Trump has separately threatened to attack Oman – a US ally – if it "gets in the way" of his efforts to force a peace deal with Iran. Ship crossings through the Strait of Hormuz were still in the single digits, despite a slight rise from the weekend, according to preliminary shipping data.
Six commodity ships transited the strait yesterday, of which three were exiting the Gulf and three were entering, Kpler ship-tracking data showed, compared with the 10-day average of 11 ships. Three ships transited on Saturday while two moved through the waterway on Sunday. There were no very large crude carriers or tankers carrying liquefied natural gas passing through.
President Donald Trump pledged on Friday to inflict severe economic damage on Iran following Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's announcement that Washington plans to levy unprecedented restrictions on Tehran as early as next week. Trade embargoes, asset freezes, and sanctions have been imposed by the United States, European Union, and United Nations since the late 1970s, citing Tehran's nuclear ambitions, human rights abuses, and backing of militant factions. An Israeli politician has publicly advocated for killing “30 to 40” people in Gaza every night.
Itamar Ben-Gvir, the minister of national security in prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, made the comment while speaking on the first episode of the podcast The 8 October. The Abu al-Zuhour military airport in northern Syria has been hit by at least four airstrikes this morning, according to Al Jazeera. The attack in the Idlib province, allegedly carried out by Israel, hit the airport's runway, causing material damage, it said.
Syria has so far not issued any official statement on the strikes. Oil prices rose this morning as a deal to end the Middle East war seemed further out of sight with Iran saying it will adopt a more offensive stance and the US ruling out extending a ceasefire agreement, heightening worries about energy supply. Brent crude futures climbed 27 cents, or 0.3 per cent, to $91.14, after rising to their highest since 30 July.
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