Iran sinks two ships in Strait of Hormuz as Trump weighs ‘mother of all bombs’ strike | war news

Iran has sunk two cargo vessels in under 24 hours in the Strait of Hormuz for the first time since the war began in March. How will the US respond? On part one of today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Venetia Rainey speaks to chief foreign affairs commentator David Blair about how and why Tehran is expanding its pace of attacks and its target range against Gulf shipping, including a record six oil tankers in one day. So far the US has avoided a military response, but with videos showing ships on fire and iPhones floating in the Strait, how long can that last? Plus, the Houthis strike Saudi Aramco’s headquarters and news that US President Donald Trump is considering using the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb - aka the “mother of all bombs” - against the heavily fortified Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site. David explains why this is unlikely to change the dynamics of the war. CHAPTERS 00:00:00 - Strait of Hormuz Escalation: Two Cargo Ships Sunk Near Oman 00:02:01 - Disinformation or Sea Mines? Analyzing Iran’s Strait Blockade Claims 00:03:15 - Record Attacks: Expanding Target Ranges Beyond the Strait of Hormuz 00:05:01 - Iran’s Pre-Midterm Strategy vs. The US Seaborne Oil Blockade 00:07:00 - Economic Pain in Tehran: Sanctions, Revenues, and Internal Resistance 00:09:48 - US Weighs Deploying the "Mother of All Bombs" (MOAB) on Nuclear Sites 00:12:31 - Regime Stability: President Pezeshkian Warns of Internal Divisions 00:13:38 - Post-Midterm Outlook: Revisiting the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding 00:16:35 - Houthi Drones Strike Saudi Aramco HQ in Major Escalation 00:19:34 - The Threat to Vision 2030 and Saudi Arabia's Dilemma CONTRIBUTORS: Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey David Blair, chief foreign affairs commentator @davidblairdt CONTENT REFERENCED: Iran hits six oil tankers in single day https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/10/13/iran-hits-six-oil-tankers-day-hormuz-war-america-trump/ Trump lines up ‘mother of all bombs’ to strike Iran https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/10/15/trump-mother-of-all-bombs-strike-iran-moab/ Winner Best News and Analysis Podcast - Publisher Podcast Awards 2026 Bronze Best News, Politics and Current Affairs - British Podcast Awards 2026 Nominated Podcast of the Year - Society of Editors News Podcasts Awards 2026 Nominated Podcast of the Year - London Press Club Awards 2026 The Telegraph, Winner Podcast Publisher of the Year 2026 - Publisher Podcast Awards 2026 Producers: Peter Shevlin and Max Bower Researcher and Social Producer: Anna Hindmarsh Studio Operator: Andy Watson Executive Producer: Venetia Rainey ► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor ► EMAIL US: Contact the team on battlelines@telegraph.co.uk ► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/ #StraitOfHormuz #IranTheLatest #MiddleEast #USIranWar #SaudiAramco