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A ship was struck by a projectile off the Oman coastline on Monday, leaving a hole in its side, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations ( UKMTO ) said on X. “The Master reports the vessel has been struck by an unknown projectile which has caused a hole on the starboard side,” the maritime authority said. “Vessel and crew safe, no environmental impact reported.” “Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO, whilst authorities investigate,” the maritime authority added

JD Vance / Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images Vice President JD Vance expressed optimism Monday about reaching a deal with Iran but warned that Tehran remains unpredictable and with President Donald Trump retaining “kinetic” options. “We've had a number of good conversations with the Iranians,” Vance said at Joint Base Andrews, adding that he had also spoken with President Donald Trump about the negotiations. “The president and I both feel pretty good about the prospects for potentially coming to a negotiated settlement,” he said. “We're going to keep on working at it. You never know, of course, the Iranians are always a little unpredictable, and as the president always says, he retains kinetic options. He retains non-kinetic options. “But we've certainly made some progress. We'll see if we can make some more.” “We haven't set deadlines,” he said of the negotiations with Tehran . “We've said, here's what we want. And what we want is having destroyed their nucl...

  Iran Regime / Hamed Malekpour / Islamic consultative assembly news agency / WANA (West Asia News Agency) / Handout via Reuters An Iranian official issued a warning Monday that the nation's economy is spiraling out of control under mounting wartime pressure, Iran International reported. Mohsen Zanganeh, chairman of parliament’s Special Committee for Supporting Production, warned that skyrocketing production costs are suffocating Iran’s manufacturing base. Producer prices, he said, have risen faster than consumer prices over the past year — exposing deep fractures in Tehran’s industrial core. “Some decisions made by executive agencies, particularly the Central Bank, are inconsistent with the goal of supporting production,” Zanganeh said, also pointing at the regime.

  Gulf Allies / Win McNamee / Getty Images U.S. allies in the Gulf are preparing for potential American strikes on Iran as early as this week amid growing concerns that Tehran could retaliate by targeting civilian and economic infrastructure. Diplomatic efforts to de-escalate regional tensions remain stalled as Iran threatens an unrestrained retaliation, The Wall Street Journal reported. In response to the heightened risk, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have conducted security drills, including emergency exercises at major airports, the outlet said. In Abu Dhabi, attendees at an international energy conference cut their visits short following government advisories. Meanwhile, schools in the Saudi capital of Riyadh shifted to remote instruction this week following threats and cross-border attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Mediators said that several Arab nations have privately warned Tehran that any strikes against their domestic infrastructure could trigger individual or ...

Saudi Arabia’s defense minister spoke with War Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday about strengthening military ties and easing regional tensions as the Houthis continued attacks targeting the region. “In a call with [@SecWar], we reviewed the strategic defense cooperation between our two countries,” bin Salman said on X . “We also discussed regional and global developments, including efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region and the continued Houthi terrorist attacks against the Kingdom,” he added. The call came as the Yemeni Armed Forces said its fighters had thwarted Houthi militia attacks on the Al-Aqrud front. “In a new war crime, the militia’s ballistic missiles targeted civilian villages in Al-Aqrud and Abdan, leaving 60 civilian martyrs and wounded, including children,” the military said of the Houthis. The Saudi-led coalition also said Monday that it had shot down two drones in the Riyadh area.

Netanyahu / Avi Ohayon / GPO Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing for further strikes on Iran after Tuesday’s midterm elections, The Associated Press reported Monday. Citing officials, the outlet said a return to full-scale war with Iran could help Netanyahu form an emergency government after he and his far-right allies lost their parliamentary majority in last week’s elections. The officials also said diplomatic efforts made progress Monday, with Qatari mediators holding two rounds of talks with Iranian officials last week and more talks planned for this week. One Israeli official also said Netanyahu was working with senior Trump administration officials to persuade the president to launch a quick but extensive air campaign but that Trump did not appear to have made a decision. Netanyahu also pushed for the new strikes during a call with Trump over the weekend, the outlet said.