The South Korean military is making "concrete preparations" to deploy troops to the Strait of Hormuz, according to a report.

"We are making concrete preparations to dispatch naval forces to the Strait of Hormuz," a National Defence Ministry official told Australia's broadcaster SBS.

The report said the deployment, which is underway, includes P-8 maritime patrol aircraft, an explosive ordnance disposal team and a logistics support ship.

The European Union has joined the US in its economic pressure campaign against Iran, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said.

"The European Union has officially joined Operation Economic Outcast, and we appreciate their strong and early stance. The United States stands firm with our allies in ensuring the murderous Iranian regime cannot exploit the global financial system to fund its nuclear ambitions, weapons programs, and terror proxies," Bessent said on X.

"The world is sending a clear message to the Iranian regime: We will not stop until every remaining financial lifeline has been severed."

The Yemeni army has said that 50 members of the Houthi group were killed or injured after it thwarted an attack aimed at taking control of a road linking the cities of Taiz and Mocha in western Yemen.

The army's Taiz Axis command said the Houthi attack targeted the Maqbanah and Al-Kadhah fronts and aimed to seize control of the road linking Taiz and Mocha in western Yemen.

Taiz Axis forces and the government-aligned National Resistance launched a joint counterattack targeting Houthi positions on the Al-Kadhah and Maqbanah fronts, it said.

US vice president acknowledges that civilian casualties can occur during combat, as Tehran reports 18 deaths and 142 injuries in recent American strikes, including casualties at a wedding gathering.

US president rejects shortage claims and says US is stockpiling munitions amid military action in Iran.

Israeli troops advance into Mansouri and Halta as explosions, air strikes and drone activity are reported across the south despite ongoing US-backed efforts to stabilise the border.

US Vice President JD Vance has told reporters that the United States does not plan to hold talks with Iran unless Tehran stops attacking commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

“The president’s been very clear: we’re not talking to them, and we’re not going to talk to them unless they stop shooting at commercial shipping,” Vance said.

He rejected calls for a timetable, arguing that setting a fixed deadline could allow Iran to continue attacks while Washington’s strategy remained publicly predictable.

“The message to the Iranians is simple,” Vance said. “You’ve got to stop shooting at commercial shipping.”

Residents of villages and displacement camps in western Taiz province in southwestern Yemen were forced to flee their homes after Houthi artillery shelling targeted residential areas, state media reported.

The Saba News Agency said villages in Maqbanah district and the Al-Kadahah area witnessed a wave of displacement that included internally displaced people’s camps, without providing a specific number of those who fled.

The displacement followed sustained Houthi artillery fire on residential areas, triggering fear among civilians, according to the report.

Israeli forces have shelled southern Lebanon and staged incursions with tanks and bulldozers, while also blowing up homes and infrastructure in several areas, Lebanese state media reported.

Israeli forces blew up homes and infrastructure in the eastern and fourth neighbourhoods of the Al-Musha area between the towns of Mansouri and Majdal Zoun using barrels containing highly destructive explosive materials, the Lebanese news agency (NNA) said.

In the Nabatieh district, Israel carried out two air strikes on the Harj Ali Taher area.

In an earlier violation, the Israeli artillery targeted the town of Mansouri, where a Merkava tank and a D9 bulldozer advanced into the town, according to the news agency.

Israeli military vehicles were also seen transporting booby-trapped containers toward the area, it said.

In a separate incursion, Israeli forces advanced into Halta Farm in the Hasbaya district of Nabatieh Governorate, surrounded several homes, and prevented some residents from leaving, according to the news agency.

An Israeli drone dropped two sound bombs on the Azziyeh-Mansouri road, it said.

Israel’s release of the Lebanese prisoners follows US mediation efforts between the two countries over the past several weeks, Axios reported, citing a senior US official.

A Department of State official said the issue was discussed during the latest round of Israel-Lebanon talks held in Rome in August.

The matter was subsequently finalised by US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa and US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee during the former's visit to Israel earlier this week.