Country

Iran

1. IMO chief says about 400 ships still stranded in Strait of Hormuz; Qatar urges Iran to reopen the strait

   International Maritime Organization Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said in Busan, South Korea, on Monday that about 400 ships carrying some 5,000 seafarers remain in the Strait of Hormuz, including two South Korean vessels, one of them the cargo ship HMM Namu, which was hit on May 4 during the Iran war, with 17 Korean seafarers stranded in all. He said the fundamental differences between the US and Iran must be resolved before the ships and crews can leave. A spokesperson for Qatar's foreign ministry, a mediator, said on Tuesday that Iran should stop threatening Gulf Arab states and open the strait to show good intentions. Iranian President Pezeshkian and Qatar's Emir Tamim met in Moscow on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum.

   Oct 28, 2026 Morning
2. Follow-up: Saudi defence minister meets Iran's president in Tehran; Egypt's parliament authorises military support for Saudi Arabia

   Countries with defence agreements with Saudi Arabia held security talks with Iran in Tehran on Monday, Oct 26. CNBC reported that Saudi Defence Minister Prince Khalid met Iran's president and the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, and the parties issued a press statement saying talks on regional peace and security will continue. Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis said the same day they had fired another missile at Riyadh's international airport. Brent crude futures settled at US$115.81 a barrel, up about 12% this month, and Egypt's parliament voted by a two-thirds majority to authorise President Sisi to take necessary measures to support Saudi Arabia.

   Oct 27, 2026 Morning
3. Follow-up: Trump says US could strike Iran as soon as Sunday or reach a major deal; Iranian president says US wrecked interim-agreement talks

   US Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton's Friday, Oct 23, memo said Iranian plots against US personnel had reached a 'late stage', and US embassies across the Middle East raised their alert level. Trump said on Saturday, Oct 24, that the US was considering an attack on Iran as soon as Sunday, that it might have to 'finish the job', or that a major deal with Tehran might be reached. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian blamed the US for collapsing interim-agreement talks, calling the US side 'cowards' who had 'messed everything up', while still arguing Tehran should push for a deal. An Iranian official told AP on Oct 24 that Tehran remained willing to negotiate with the US under the earlier framework. The same day a Saudi-led coalition said it had destroyed two ballistic missiles fired by Houthis towards Taif and Yanbu. The US this week ordered non-essential government employees to leave Saudi Arabia. The war is in its eighth month.

   Oct 25, 2026 Afternoon
4. US intelligence chief Jay Clayton warns Iranian plots against Americans are at a 'late stage'; US cuts staff at 4 Middle East embassies

   US Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton said in an unclassified memo to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, copied to CIA Director Ratcliffe, that Iran had increased efforts to target US personnel and that attack plots in the Middle East and some other countries had reached a 'late stage'. Argentina's Clarín reported that the US then reduced staff at four embassies in the Middle East. US ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz told the Financial Times the war with Iran could last another year.

   Oct 24, 2026 Afternoon
5. US envoy Tom Barrack says strike on Iran 'absolutely possible' this weekend; Brent crude tops $117, a six-month high

   US ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack told Israeli Army Radio on Oct 23 that a US attack as early as this weekend was 'absolutely possible'; Trump said he knew 'nothing' about it and had earlier said he would not act before the Nov 3 midterm elections. Iran said that if the US and Israel launched a new offensive it would hit oil facilities, undersea cables, data centres and AI facilities in the Gulf. Brent crude rose as much as about 3.5% on Friday to above $117 a barrel, its highest since April, compared with about $72 in February before the war, while foreign ministers of eight countries including Britain, France, Germany and Turkey urged 'maximum restraint' after meeting in Istanbul.

   Oct 24, 2026 Morning
6. Iran's Revolutionary Guards say seven ships hit or struck mines near the Strait of Hormuz; Trump says Iran is making up attacks to drive up oil prices

   Al Jazeera reported Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Oct 22 that four oil-carrying ships were attacked and set ablaze in the northern Persian Gulf and three more lost power after hitting mines west of the Strait of Hormuz, the most in a single day on the waterway since the US and Israel went to war with Iran on Feb 28; the claims were not independently verified. The IRGC warned the conflict would extend to US bases in the region if the US kept helping tankers through the strait, while Trump said on Truth Social Iran was making up the attacks and mines to push up oil prices before the midterm elections. CNBC said Brent crude futures rose 4% to settle at $113.17 a barrel, the highest since May 4, and CBS said US Central Command marked 100 days of the renewed blockade of Iranian ports, which it said had stopped about $25 billion of Iranian crude exports.

   Oct 23, 2026 Morning
7. Iran security chief says not 'a grain' of enriched uranium will leave; Rubio calls a deal with Tehran 'extremely difficult'

   IRNA reported that Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, told Pakistani mediator and army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir on the evening of Oct 20 that not 'a grain' of Iran's enriched uranium would leave the country. Al Jazeera reported US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told US media that a peace deal with Iran is 'extremely difficult' and that economic pressure would continue until Tehran stops targeting commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz; Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the strait would stay closed until Washington accepts Iran's conditions, with indirect talks still going through Pakistan and Qatar. Times of Israel reported Netanyahu the same day vowed to topple Iran's regime.

   Oct 21, 2026 Afternoon
8. Iran FM Araghchi warns US against further force; parliament approves new defence minister

   RIA Novosti reported Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned the US on social media on Oct 19: 'Last time you wanted to "finish the job", Iran only grew stronger… we too have unfinished business', and said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was dragging the US into another war to escape prison. Trump said on Oct 13 he would soon decide next steps on Iran. Reuters reported Iran's parliament on Sunday approved Mehrdad Akhlaqi Ketabchi as defence minister, ending months of caretaker status after predecessor Nasirzadeh was killed in a US-Israeli airstrike in February; Akhlaqi has long worked in Iran's defence industry, including space and missile roles, and is sanctioned by the US and EU.

   Oct 19, 2026 Afternoon