The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Oct. 18 local time a southbound tug was struck by two unknown projectiles off Khor Fakkan, UAE. The impact damaged the hull and caused one minor injury; the tug remained on its intended passage. Authorities are investigating. UKMTO issued a safety advisory urging vessels transiting the area to exercise heightened caution and to report any suspicious activity immediately.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu praised President Trump’s approach to Iran and warned Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and bid to dominate the Middle East — including control of key waterways and oil supplies — pose a direct threat to the United States. He described Hamas, Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthi rebels as extensions of Iranian leadership and called for sustained military and economic pressure on Tehran. Netanyahu said he met Trump at Mar-a-Lago before the last US presidential election and that Trump had already recognised the Iranian nuclear threat as extending beyond Israel. "By then, every American city, every city, would be held hostage by these fanatics," he said.

US Vice President Vance told CBS gasoline prices are high but would be roughly twice current levels if the US Navy did not ensure oil and gas transit through the Strait of Hormuz. He warned that if the US were to "walk away" energy prices would surge. Vance said Washington seeks two objectives to end the conflict with Iran: a Tehran commitment not to seek restoration of uranium enrichment capacity, and steps to avoid a global energy crisis from scaling back US military presence in the region.