Maritime risk CEO Martin Kelly and security analysts identified the leaking vessel as the Panama-flagged oil tanker Gem No.2.

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Houthi strikes near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait disrupted Red Sea maritime trade and severely reduced Egypt's Suez Canal revenues

Conflict and Environment Observatory researcher Leon Moreland stated satellite imagery from October 19 and 21, 2026 showed the Gem No.2 slick covering approximately 160 square kilometers.

The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Climate Change and Environment reported an offshore tanker oil spill on October 23, 2026 that reached the beaches of Umm Al Quwain.

Attacks on commercial vessels near the Strait of Hormuz escalated following United States and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February 2026.

Maritime firm Windward warned that uncontained oil drift threatened desalination plant water intakes and commercial ports in Sharjah and Ajman by October 23, 2026.

International maritime agencies reported the Gem No.2 was struck in a suspected Iranian drone attack on October 9, 2026, leading to the rescue of 22 Indian sailors.

Shipping sources reported that the oil tanker Gem No.2 was struck by a projectile 13 nautical miles west of Al Jazeera in the United Arab Emirates on October 9, 2026.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps declared it targets tankers using unapproved shipping lanes in the southern Strait of Hormuz near Oman.

Maritime intelligence firm Windward reported on October 20, 2026 that a VLCC-sized vessel was leaking oil about 25 kilometers off Umm Al Quwain.

Shipping analysis firm Lloyd's List Intelligence reported 28 attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz during October 2026, the highest monthly total since the Iran war began in February 2026

Under U.S. Central Command protection, tanker operators have maintained oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz by conducting nighttime transfers with location tracking and mobile phones turned off

Air India and Air India Express suspended flights to and from Riyadh and Dammam until November 7, 2026, and to Jeddah until October 31, 2026, citing regional security conditions

On October 23, 2026, the Comoros-flagged cargo ship Khoryv sank approximately 13 nautical miles off the Romanian port of Constanta after being struck by a drone

The cargo ship Khoryv carried 13 crew members, including 10 Ukrainian citizens and three Azerbaijani nationals

The cargo ship Khoryv departed Turkey on October 21, 2026, bound for Romania's Sulina port along the Danube River canal

Seven crew members went missing on October 15, 2026, after the chemical tanker Wine Trader caught fire in a drone attack off Romania

Adverse weather conditions and poor visibility prevented helicopter aerial rescue operations for the crew of the capsized cargo ship Khoryv

Rescue operations on October 23, 2026, saved nine crew members, recovered one deceased sailor, and left three missing after the cargo ship Khoryv capsized

At least seven other cargo vessels were attacked off the Black Sea coasts of Romania and Bulgaria in October 2026, leaving two dead and 25 missing

The U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on October 21, 2026 on Karnakis & Karnakis, a law firm based in Greece and Panama, for providing legal assistance to Iranian shipping networks