World News: 2 November 2026

Toxic haze from wildfires in Kalimantan, Papua and Sumatra has reached Singapore and Malaysia for weeks, causing respiratory illnesses and political pressure. In Malaysia, residents began boycotting Indonesian products after a lawmaker called for sanctions on companies linked to the fires. Singapore set up hundreds of haze shelters, distributed masks and is investigating 10 Singapore-registered companies for possible links to the wildfires.

Israeli forces advanced into the village of al-Asbah in rural southern Quneitra with five military vehicles, Syria TV reported. The Sijil initiative, which tracks Israeli violations in Syria, said forces committed seven violations on Monday before the latest incursion, including other incursions, checkpoints and aircraft overflights.

President Donald Trump said the US will not attack Iran after Tuesday's midterms, ruling out strikes during a speech at the Washington Reflecting Pool. He said there was no rush, that Iran was financially crippled and that a settlement could happen soon, after Tucker Carlson warned Trump was weighing a nuclear strike at Benjamin Netanyahu's behest. Brent crude fell 7% to $104 a barrel as Qatari mediators continued shuttling between Doha and Iran.

Haitian gang leader Wilson Joseph asked the UN on Monday to send a delegation to mediate as clashes with an international force intensify. The letter, sent from Plaine du Cul-de-Sac, comes after four Salvadoran aviation technicians were attacked on Oct. 18 and remain missing, prompting El Salvador to deploy more than 2,000 troops. More than 5,700 were killed or injured from January to mid-September.

The US has said it will remove South Africa and Rwanda from the African Growth and Opportunity Act trade programme from January 1, 2027. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said an annual review found both failed to meet eligibility criteria, citing trade barriers, security concerns, human rights and corruption. South Africa, the programme's largest beneficiary, exported about $1.7bn under AGOA in 2025.

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Monday to stop California from counting mail-in ballots from more than 20,000 voters it claims are not US citizens, one day before the midterms. The Justice Department wants the ballots set aside until citizenship is verified, while California says the list is unreliable and could include eligible voters. A federal judge and an appeals court had rejected earlier requests.

The Houthis have launched multiple small cross-border raids into Saudi Arabia's mountainous southwest in recent months, according to a western and an Arab official. At least one raid occurred at the end of October and appears to have captured small arms used by Saudi border security forces. The attacks mark the first Houthi incursions inside Saudi Arabia since a Yemen ceasefire collapsed.

Germany's largest union, IG Metall, launched strikes on Monday affecting about 3.7 million employees in the metal and electrical engineering industries. The union is seeking a 5% pay rise, job protections and profit-sharing, while employers offered a one-off payment in July 2027 and a 1.3% increase from July 2028. Audi, Mercedes-Benz and Tata Steel were affected, and strikes are expected to continue this week.

Russian bombs struck a school used as an aid centre in Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia, killing 24 people, including rescuers and police officers, and injuring five, Ukraine's emergency service said. President Volodymyr Zelensky said a second strike hit the shelter where people sheltered, calling the attack proof Russia does not want de-escalation. Rescue work was interrupted by drone attacks, and strikes injured 12 in Kharkiv and five in Odesa.

China's foreign minister met Iran's senior security official in Beijing, while President Xi hosted Oman's Sultan Haitham for the first state visit by an Omani leader since 1978. Beijing said dialogue remained the only viable path and reaffirmed support for Iran's sovereignty. China and Oman signed 14 cooperation documents and a currency swap, and urged the US and Iran to restart dialogue over Hormuz.

Leaders of Israel's main opposition bloc will meet in Herzliya on Tuesday to discuss and coordinate next steps after last week's legislative elections, the Yashar party said. The party of bloc leader Gadi Eisenkot said the leaders will try to form a majority.

Iran's security chief Mohsen Rezaei spoke by telephone with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the US-Israel war on Iran, state-run IRNA said. The call was described as part of high-level consultations between the two countries following recent meetings between senior officials.

A Wizz Air flight from London Luton to Sofia was escorted by a Hungarian fighter jet to Budapest after a bomb threat in the air. Authorities completed security checks and found nothing, and the airline said the plane would depart again shortly.

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said the country's Supreme Leader has granted the government certain authorities over peace talks, state media reported on Monday. He said Tehran will try to resolve the problem with dialogue, without elaborating.

Three men appeared in court in Athens on Monday accused of causing a deadly gas explosion by stealing copper piping from a gas supply network. The Sept. 25 blast in the Plaka district killed six people, including an elderly couple and four American tourists, and collapsed a two-story residential building.

The suspects, two Greeks and one Albanian national, face charges including arson, manslaughter with possible intent and causing a deadly explosion.

Human Rights Watch said Zambian authorities forcibly disappeared, detained, beat and threatened opposition members, lawyers and journalists before and after August's election. The report documented 14 apparent enforced disappearances and 61 cases of alleged beatings or abuse. President Hakainde Hichilema won a second term, and opposition leaders, including challenger Brian Mundubile, remain in detention.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever resigned on Monday after failing to win support within his five-party government for a 2027 budget. King Philippe has not yet decided whether to accept, and will consult party group leaders from Tuesday before meeting De Wever again on Friday. Belgium is one of the EU's most indebted countries, with debt forecast to reach 110% of GDP this year.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said attacks in northern Ethiopia are pushing the region's fragile health system closer to collapse. He said children were reportedly killed at the Jaari 2 displacement camp in Amhara, and hospitals lack workers, medicines and equipment. Renewed fighting has shattered a November 2022 peace agreement between the federal government and Tigray rebel forces.

At least four people were killed on Sunday when a lorry laden with explosives detonated near a military base in Planadas, Tolima province. A two-month-old baby girl was among the dead, Tolima governor Adriana Magali Matiz said. The explosion damaged a nearby hospital and several buildings, as armed groups have stepped up attacks against security forces.

Israel's first ambassador to Somaliland, Michael Lotem, presented his credentials to President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi in Hargeisa, the Israeli foreign ministry said. The ceremony followed mutual recognition on 26 December 2025 and included laying the cornerstone for an Israeli embassy. The two countries are also discussing a possible Israeli naval base on Somaliland's Red Sea coast.

Heavy rain brought flash flooding and mandatory evacuations across parts of Arizona and New Mexico, while Colorado's Pagosa Springs braced for a potentially catastrophic San Juan River crest. The river was forecast to reach more than 20 feet, above the 17.8 feet recorded in the town's devastating 1911 flood, and had reached about 14 feet by Sunday evening.

Officials closed roads in Pagosa Springs and ordered evacuations near swollen rivers in Sedona, Camp Verde and Gisela.

Jordan's King Abdullah II said the kingdom would confront terrorism and extremism after a church attack in Karak killed nine people and wounded dozens. Opening parliament in Amman, he said the attackers were not of Jordan and that the army and security services would act with an iron fist. He also called Israeli expansionism the greatest threat to the region and pledged to protect Jordan's water supplies.

Dutch authorities offered a record 2 million euro reward for information leading to the arrest of Jos Leijdekkers, a 35-year-old drug trafficker known as Chubby Jos and believed to be hiding in Sierra Leone. Leijdekkers, considered a key player in the international cocaine trade, was sentenced in absentia in the Netherlands to 24 years for nearly 7,000 kilos of cocaine and to 79 years in Belgium.

Yemen's government army and allied forces have launched a major counteroffensive in Al-Jawf to capture strategic heights east of al-Hazm from the Houthis. The operation, part of Operation Dawn of Yemen, aims to reverse Houthi gains and restore state control. A field commander said government forces now control the Huwaishan mountain range, a first Houthi defensive line, and have gained partial control of the Al-Alam front road.

Iran said it could reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days if the United States accepted its demands, including ending the war on all fronts, unfreezing Iranian assets, lifting oil sanctions and ending the US naval blockade. Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said message exchanges continue via Qatari mediators, while Iran's deputy foreign minister travelled to Doha to help draft a preliminary agreement.

Jordan's King Abdullah stated there would be no security or stability in the region until the Palestinian people's right to their homeland is fulfilled. Speaking at the opening of Jordan's parliament, he described Israel's expansionist ambitions as the greatest threat to the region's future. He noted that the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza continues despite international calls for an end to Israel's violations.

Syria's foreign minister said discussions are under way to evaluate Damascus's entry into the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, a mutual defence pact signed by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan. The agreement treats an attack on one member as an attack on all, a framework similar to NATO. Al-Shaibani said Syria is an integral part of regional security, while an analyst said the talks remain in early stages.

Bulgaria elected Iliana Iotova as its first female president, a victory that consolidates the ruling party's control over the National Assembly, government and presidency. Iotova, an independent candidate supported by the Bulgarian Socialist Party and Prime Minister Rumen Radev's party, defeated Andrey Gyurov. The election has deepened political divisions and raised questions about the country's direction between Russia and Western allies.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said reports of new military action against Iran are a cause for extreme concern. Russia has been calling for increased diplomatic efforts to normalise the situation in the region.

Maria Montserrat Alvarado, a 39-year-old US media executive, will become head of Vatican communications this week, the first laywoman and first non-Italian to lead the department. The appointment, announced in June, signals that Pope Leo XIV views women differently from his predecessors, according to analysts.

Supermarket chains in Sweden, Belgium and Luxembourg reported that refrigerator and freezer temperatures rose overnight in a suspected cyber-attack. The incident affects dozens of stores, including those operated by Ahold Delhaize, ICA and Coop, causing significant food losses. It follows a similar attack in October that affected up to 700 French supermarkets, highlighting the vulnerability of internet-connected cooling systems.

French high school students resumed protests on Monday on a much smaller scale, with 41 schools blockaded, about one percent of the country's 3,700, according to the Education Ministry. Students in Paris, Marseille and Rennes attempted blockades after a two-week break, while the government said it had offered concessions but student groups called for more action.

An Al Jazeera investigation reported that Hamas meeting records included a clause allowing the 7 October 2023 attack to be cancelled if Israeli attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque and in prisons ceased. The records, from Hamas' armed wing, discussed an operation codenamed Project Fahd, with objectives including defeating Israel's Gaza Division and capturing soldiers. Middle East Eye could not independently verify the document.

South African police arrested five suspects in the attack on Donovan Marx, 50, who was shot, stabbed and had his ears cut off during a house robbery on his farm in North West province. The suspects, aged 26 to 56, will appear in court on Tuesday facing house robbery, attempted murder and illegal possession of firearms charges, in a case that has caused widespread outrage.

Sudan lodged a complaint against Ethiopia with the UN Security Council and the African Union's Peace and Security Council after deadly drone attacks this year. A military report alleged 70 assaults from February 15 to October 27 involving 187 one-way attack drones, killing or wounding 484 civilians and killing 176 soldiers.

The foreign ministry accused the Rapid Support Forces of using Ethiopian territory to strike civilian sites and power stations.

Turkiye moved Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed founder of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, to a newly built section of the island prison where he has been held for 27 years, pro-Kurdish legislators said. Mithat Sancar said the transfer should accelerate a peace process that has been paused for two months. Pervin Buldan said the new facility is still part of the prison, while the PKK leadership has repeatedly demanded Ocalan's release.

Displaced Sudanese in Port Sudan are facing reduced aid as the war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces deepens food shortages. The conflict, which began in April 2023, has killed as many as 200,000 people according to aid workers and displaced 13 million. The United States warned on October 27 that food availability is deteriorating and that Sudan faces a risk of famine in the coming months.

Former British paratrooper Karl Bushby ended a 28-year trek around the world on Monday by returning to his mother's home in Hull after swimming the English Channel. He walked from Chile across four continents without using transport to advance; reports give the distance as 50,000 kilometers and 31,000 to 36,000 miles. Bushby, 57, was met by crowds and became the first person to walk continuously around the world.

Iran's foreign ministry said exchanges with the United States were ongoing via Qatari mediators after its negotiators left Doha on Sunday. A draft proposal is being circulated, with a follow-up meeting possible, an official said. Iran's basis is a seven-step plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the US naval blockade, with Tehran suggesting a faster timeline under a deal.

A temporary ceasefire in a Russian-occupied Ukrainian city ended after lasting several days and allowing hundreds of residents to evacuate. In Ethiopia, renewed fighting in the north, high reconstruction costs and climate-related crop problems are threatening strong economic growth. The International Monetary Fund forecasts 9.2% real growth for the 2025 to 2026 fiscal year.

South Africans are voting on Wednesday in local government elections that will decide control of major cities and test the African National Congress after it lost its parliamentary majority in 2024. Councilors will choose mayors responsible for water, sanitation and rubbish collection. The Democratic Alliance has nominated 75-year-old Helen Zille. Johannesburg, a key economic hub, is governed by a fragile ANC-led coalition.

More than 50 leaders are meeting in Antigua for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, representing 2.7 billion people and nearly a third of the world's population. Secretary-General Shirley Botchwey said leaders will address conflict, economic shocks, rising costs, climate change and trade, including the weaponization of tariffs. Officials are expected to establish a fund to help nations move from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

Gulf states fear a renewed war with Iran after Tuesday's US midterms, as Tehran waits for a response to a proposal to fully open the Strait of Hormuz within two days. Iranian officials said their delegation left Qatar but messages continue through the mediator. New supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei told military chiefs any threat should be met immediately without geographic limits.

Virunga National Park confirmed that anthrax killed 28 hippos over about a month in the Semuliki River, west of Africa's oldest national park. The deaths are occurring while the Democratic Republic of the Congo faces its deadliest Ebola outbreak. Park officials said the bacterium can be transmitted to humans through contact with dead or sick animals or by consuming their meat, and teams are monitoring the area and managing carcasses.

Uganda has begun withdrawing troops from Somalia, with the first contingent of 109 soldiers leaving Mogadishu on Friday. Army chief Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba said security responsibilities are being handed to Somali forces after nearly two decades of involvement. The phased pullout is expected to finish by August 2027, while troops under a separate bilateral arrangement will remain.

Indian authorities began evacuating low-lying coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh as Cyclone Murasu approaches a region still recovering from Cyclone Arnab, which killed six people. About 2,000 people had been evacuated by Monday, with plans for 30,000 more. The India Meteorological Department expects the storm to cross the south Andhra coast as a severe cyclonic storm with winds of 100 to 110 km/h and gusts to 120 km/h.

Ryanair is considering temporary pay freezes, lower crew ratios and more AI use to offset soaring fuel costs linked to the Middle East conflict. The airline expects its fuel bill to rise by about €2bn and said European short-haul fares may increase materially, with the chief executive forecasting fare rises of 15% to 20% next year. The cost pressure is squeezing profits and may be passed to passengers.

Australian author Craig Silvey was jailed on Monday for seven months over child exploitation offences. Police found explicit images and videos on his devices and online chats in which he described a sexual interest in boys, saying eight was the perfect age. Judge Hayley Cormann said he had devastated and betrayed the trust of thousands of people. The sentence was backdated to 22 October and he is eligible for parole.

Democratic Congresswoman Haley Stevens endorsed Republican Mike Rogers over her party's nominee Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan's closely watched Senate race two days before the midterms. The split followed weeks of tension over US support to Israel, with El-Sayed accusing Netanyahu of pushing the US into the Iran war. Democratic leaders rallied behind El-Sayed, while his campaign reported a fundraising surge.

The United Nations is demanding an independent investigation into the death of Mohammad el-Shami, a UN Human Rights Office employee detained by Yemen's Houthis since June 2024. His family was notified more than a month after his death and has not received an explanation. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the immediate release of all detained personnel. He is the second UN staff member to die in Houthi custody.

Afghanistan's Taliban government voiced serious concern on Monday over reported US plans to deport more than 150 Afghans to Pakistan for eventual return home. The reported deportees include relatives of Afghans who assisted US forces before the 2021 withdrawal, and advocacy groups warned the removals could endanger their lives. The United States cannot arrange direct deportations to Afghanistan, and Pakistan will oversee their expulsion.

The United Nations said its Western Sahara peacekeeping mission, MINURSO, ceased operations Sunday after 35 years in the territory once ruled by Spain and claimed by Morocco and the Polisario Front. The UN will repatriate about 160 military observers and close 13 facilities and team sites as it winds down the mission. The move ends the UN's long mission in the disputed territory.

The Saudi-led coalition said its air defences intercepted and destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile heading toward Saudi Arabia's southern region. Saudi civil defence had issued alerts in Khamis Mushait, Abha, Taif and Najran before saying the danger had passed. The interception shows Houthi missile fire is reaching Saudi Arabia's southern region.

Hungary's new government will publish the names of tens of thousands of state informants from 1945 to 1989 in a searchable online database. The files, previously restricted to researchers and relatives of victims, will be released on 4 November after a law passed in September. The move aims to confront the past and rebuild public trust. Historians estimate 10% of the 50,000 to 60,000 named people are alive.

Hundreds of garment factories in Bangladesh were disrupted on Monday as worker protests over low pay and living costs entered a third day. About 500 factories had been temporarily shuttered since Saturday, and police used tear gas and sound grenades in Dhaka and other industrial areas. The government formed a wage board on Sunday to review the minimum wage, currently 12,500 taka, or $101, in an industry worth about $38bn.

Hebron's governor said Israeli forces have withdrawn after a 10-day siege, with Palestinian security forces taking full control. Displaced families can return. The siege began Oct. 23 after two Palestinians killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded three. Israeli forces later killed the attackers. More than 3,300 Palestinians were displaced or affected, and 15 homes and other structures were demolished.

Russia said its emergency alerts app was hit by a cyberattack hours after Ukraine reported its air raid warning system was hacked. The incidents followed the end of the war's longest truce in Kherson, which Kyiv said expired after Russia refused an extension. Emergency power cuts took effect in Kyiv and the surrounding region, and Russia said it struck a military facility in the Odesa region and a cargo vessel 58 km south of Odesa.

Yousef Jabareen, head of Israel's Joint List, said he is ready to join the Change bloc to oust Benjamin Netanyahu's government after Arab-led parties won a record 19 seats. Turnout among Arab Israelis, about 20% of the population, more than doubled to about 80%, while Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza had no vote. President Isaac Herzog is due to summon leaders as early as Wednesday to ask who should get the first chance to form government.

Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his party failed to discredit Israel's election results. He called the results clear and unequivocal and urged Israelis to ignore the background noise. Eisenkot said the people are sovereign and that Netanyahu's government has no majority and has lost.

Right-wing Israeli protesters demonstrated in Haifa, calling for a government without Arab parties and for new elections. They cited allegations of electoral fraud allegedly facilitated by funding from Qatar.

A Commons committee said the UK is making up its China policy as it goes along, missing commercial opportunities and leaving national security risks unaddressed. The report said Labour has failed to deliver a coherent strategy since 2024, risking a relationship shaped by Washington or Beijing. It cited the March decision to block Ming Yang from building a 1.5bn pound wind energy plant in Scotland.

China's state broadcaster CCTV did not air Real Madrid's La Liga match on Sunday, continuing a suspension of Spanish league broadcasts after Kylian Mbappe joked about a meme of his face on a 'Chinese dictator' resembling Mao. Mbappe, Real Madrid and La Liga have apologized, and China Media Group acknowledged the apologies without saying when the blackout would end.

Former Mossad chief David Barnea said Israel intentionally released footage of a covert operation in Iran during the June 2025 conflict to provoke mass arrests and protect real agents. He said the official video, released on the morning of Operation Rising Lion with the Mossad logo, was meant to overwhelm Iranian counterintelligence. Barnea said Iranian authorities arrested 21,000 people during the operation.

A tanker travelling southeast through the Gulf was struck by two unidentified projectiles on its port side, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency said. The incident occurred 72 nautical miles east of Saudi Arabia's Ras al-Khafji. UKMTO said all crew members were accounted for and no environmental impact had been reported.

Houthi media said at least seven people were wounded in Saudi-led coalition air strikes on Yemen's Hodeidah governorate, with four injured at Ras Isa port and three at an oil company site in Bajil. The coalition did not comment on the reports. It said separately that air defences intercepted and destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile heading toward Saudi Arabia's southern region, after alerts in Abha, Khamis Mushait, Taif and Najran.

More than 2,000 oarsmen have spent months preparing for Thailand's Royal Barge Procession, which will take King Maha Vajiralongkorn, Queen Suthida and royal family members to Wat Arun Ratchawararam temple on Friday. The 52-barge fleet will row in five columns and three lines while performing boat songs. The event is held for the Buddhist Kathin ceremony after the end of Buddhist Lent, and this year is an auspicious year for Queen Suthida.

More than 40,000 volunteers built 108 Buddhist stupas along a riverbank near Bhutan's Indian border on Sunday, at the site of the planned Gelephu Mindfulness City. About 200,000 people attended the ceremony, nearly a quarter of the population, as the kingdom seeks to boost investment and retain young people. The project, established by royal charter in 2024, aims to create an economic hub as Bhutan faces unemployment and skilled migration.

A diplomatic adviser to the UAE president said at the IISS Manama Dialogue that the United Arab Emirates hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough in negotiations between Iran and the United States. Anwar Gargash added that the UAE is braced for the worst and will take measures to protect itself and its citizens.

Ukraine's Air Force said its nationwide air raid alert app was probably hacked after false warnings of nuclear and chemical threats near Kyiv and a deployed Russian Oreshnik missile. The app is used across Ukraine to warn people in real time of Russian air strikes. Ukraine's strategic communications centre blamed Russia, and Kyiv said a separate capital app still worked. The alerts came as the war's longest localised ceasefire in Kherson ended.

Authorities identified 66 of the 69 people killed when a high-speed train struck a stopped train outside Urda, Toledo province, leaving three missing: two Australians and one Japanese citizen. Among the dead were 54 Spaniards, four Americans and citizens from Canada, Japan, Argentina, Mexico, Tunisia, the Czech Republic, France and Portugal. The crash, Spain's second high-speed collision this year, occurred a month before a general election.

Four Americans were among at least 69 people killed when a high-speed train struck a stopped train in central Spain on Oct. 28. The crash in Urda, Toledo province, injured 58 and was the second fatal rail collision on the Madrid-Seville line this year, ending a run of more than three decades without fatal crashes. Spain's transport minister blamed a traffic controller, while unions cited understaffing and worsening working conditions.

At least six people were killed and dozens wounded in shootings across US nightlife districts and near university campuses over Halloween weekend. Dallas recorded the highest toll, with four killed and 15 injured in the Deep Ellum neighbourhood. In Birmingham, one person was killed and eight wounded after a college football game, while some suspects remained at large.

Nine people died when a Learjet 60 business jet crashed into a residential neighbourhood in South Florida, killing all on board. The plane was heading from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas, and cockpit recordings captured the pilot saying the plane was rapidly losing altitude. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis described the crash as cataclysmic and said there appeared to be no casualties on the ground.

Israel's Central Elections Committee head said results would stand even if suspicions of foreign interference were substantiated. Netanyahu's Likud party claimed Arab-led parties stole the vote by accepting Qatari funding, an allegation Qatar rejected. The Arab-led parties won a record 19 seats, leaving neither bloc able to form a government alone.

President Trump called Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed a jihadist at rallies in Iowa and Kansas, saying a special metal detector would be needed if he won. Democratic congresswoman Haley Stevens, who lost to El-Sayed in the primary, endorsed Republican Mike Rogers, deepening divisions in Michigan ahead of Tuesday's midterms.

French prosecutors launched an attempted murder investigation after petrol bombs were thrown at police during protests in Paris. A gendarmerie officer suffered burns to his ankle and minor injuries to his hand, and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez called the attack a murder attempt. Hundreds of thousands protested across France over cost of living and public services, with more than 770 arrests on Saturday.

Iran said a renewed war with the United States could last longer than the previous conflict, after President Donald Trump said the US still had targets to strike. The IRGC said two tankers hit mines and caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz, while Trump warned Iran to make a deal and said the US may need to give Tehran 'the hammer'.