He is yeah... Jude Bellingham did score twice though... I wonder why Trump chose not to mention that fact. I mean, what immutable characteristic might Trump have seen in Harry Kane that made him single him out for praise? Nope... nothing springs to mind...

A sidenote to yesterday's cricket match. It is Northamptonshire "Village" Cricket League 9... we aren't playing because we have to win at all costs. We are playing because we are too old or broken for other sports and still like to turn up and play a team sport on a Saturday. #IshamCricketClub

Flash Warning from the UKMTO Another vessel attack - this time in the Southern Red Sea to the North of the Bab al-Mandeb. This may well confirm that the recent attacks are Houthi-organised and not pirate attacks from Africa due to the area. I will keep watching for more info. #RedSea #IranProxy

I really fancy tandoori butter chicken for dinner. I don’t have a tandoor oven. But I Do have a pellet smoker and tandoori spice rub… So time to see if I can reverse engineer a tandoori flavour by smoking for a few hours then using a grill to char the chicken…

Did the POTUS just accidentally acknowledge that mass gun ownership in the USA is as big a problem to its citizen’s safety as a foreign war? I wonder if the NRA and arms manufacture that support him will agree…

Loooong day. But the bowlers and fielders held up for the full 40 overs.

Quite an innings for us. Very hot and humid. 314 total. Captain and Kalvin hit 100’s. 22 for me which I will absolutely take. Now the bowlers need to do their thing. #IshamCricketClub

1/11 This weekend I turn my attention to the reports over the week of Russian tankers potentially carrying weapons in response to UK prosecutions. This is a serious escalation that requires some explanation. #Shipping #MaritimeSecurity

I did have an article drafted for today. But. I decided to reach out to an actual journalist to see if they want to cover it - it being a follow-up to something they did a while ago. So. Having nothing to write - I decided to make pasta for tonight’s dinner. Courgette, pea and mint lasagne

amzn.eu/d/0e5DfCGK #BookSky #TheHormuzCrisis #Maritime #Geopolitics

1/10 The reported grounding in the Strait of Hormuz caught my attention for one reason. Almost all the discussion has focused on whether the ship followed Iran's approved route. I think that's the wrong question. #Hormuz #Shipping

DRC vs England. The difference between when playing for your country is an honour you give everything for Vs When it is a chore you do for money

Flash Warning from the UKMTO A vessel has been boarded by armed assailants in the Gulf of Aden. This is a clear escalation from last week where multiple attempts were made to board vessels. I will keep watching the reports of this as it unfolds. #RedSea #IranWar

FLASH UPDATE - HORMUZ I have as little information as is given below - but a vessel has grounded in Hormuz after not following the Iranian route. This could be a navigation error - which is highly likely in the Southern route for many reasons - not all nefarious. I will keep watching #Hormuz

1/10 Yesterday I argued that Articles 5 and 10 of the Iran MoU cannot be separated. One restores the commercial systems needed for trade. The other restores the operational conditions needed for ships to move safely through Hormuz. For shipping, they are part of the same system. #IranMoU #USAIran

Small win today. I made the LinkedIn news cycle with my article from this morning as one of the 6 articles to read to understand the current situation. Always good to get some positive feedback 😀

1/13 Ahead of today's talks, most reporting has focused on who will be at the table. I think the more important focus should be what they believe they are actually discussing. Because I think the USA and Iran have different answers to that line of interrogation. #IranUSA #Hormuz #Trump #MoU

The response to The Hormuz Crisis Volume 1 has exceeded my expectations. Seeing people read and discuss it has made the last few months of writing worthwhile. If you've finished the book and found it interesting, I'd be hugely grateful if you would consider leaving an honest review. #TheHormuzCrisis

The “assault on reality” continues. How is anyone supposed to honestly analyse and document this time in history? The leaders are unable to even agree on the nature of truth and lies and constantly try to warp reality to their whim. #Trump #IranUSAWar

It is almost like he thinks we can not just go and check the international market prices. He also suggests it is a "Retailer Issue" - conveniently forgetting, I am sure, that it is a globally traded commodity and the prices at the pump reflect the need to purchase at a higher price now not later.

I know this is wishful thinking... But did the Mango Mussolini just tweet the exact reference needed to prosecute him for destroying the East Wing of the White House? #Trump #Section1361

1/4 This may be the most significant development for the Strait of Hormuz to come about since the MoU was signed, and could define what happens over the coming days. This is clear evidence of Iran deciding to unilaterally manage the Strait - which speaks to the interpretations I set out earlier.

1/18 I've spent most of this morning looking not just at the overnight events, but at what they say about the wider US-Iran MoU. I don't think it's dead. But I do think it's under pressure from several directions at once. #Hormuz #Geopolitics

All my alerts just went off. Second day of air strikes from both sides, Iran and the USA. And we are back to threatening to destroy a country again. I will be putting together a briefing in the morning - but this is more proof the MoU is crumbling I think. #IranUSAWar #Trump

So it was the “calm before the storm” after all. Another bombing of Southern Iran in response to the attacks on ships. We will have to see if this breaks the MoU, and what effect this may have on the Lebanon peace process that was affirmed just hours ago. #Trump #Hormuz #IranWar

One of my friends sent me this. Yes it is probably AI generated. But it did make me laugh - and I was feeling a bit down about the review 🤣 #Booksky #ReviewMeme

1/2 I think this actually counts as a restrained response from Trump. No word on if there will be repercussions, or if it will affect the negotiations. Also no word on the Lebanon situation - which is understandable as he is still treating it as a separate issue when the Iranians aren't. #Trump

Well... I guess I should just close up and go home then right? Someone that probably hasn't read the book has decided I am not worth listening to Wonderful. #Booksky #Author

1/15 I've spent the last couple of days looking at the latest reports from Hormuz and Lebanon. Individually they appear separate. Together they suggest the region is moving back towards the same strategic dilemma that diplomacy was supposed to resolve. #Hormuz #MiddleEast

My wife just pointed this out to me. I mean - You have to celebrate the wins right? Thank you to everyone that has brought the book, or looked at the sample or used the Kindle Unlimited!! #Booksky #OfficiallyanAuthor #TheHormuzCrisis #Geopolitics

Not exactly an admission from the PGSA / IRGC but clearly an indication that they view the only safe route through the Strait of Hormuz as being the Northern route as dictated by them. I am looking for a response from the USA and CENTCOM in particular, but I am yet to see one. #IranWar #Hormuz

Update. Due to the attack on the vessel in the Strait - The IMO has paused the efforts to evacuate seafarers. On the day of the seafarer!! This happens!! Please spare thoughts for the sailors today. This is not over for them despite the headlines. #MerchantSeafarers #Hormuz #IranWar

Serious flash warning from the UKMTO. A vessel has been struck by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz very close to the Oman coast. Too early to say why. But it may be linked to the IRGC warnings not to use the Oman Southern route issued earlier. #Hormuz #IranWar #Geopolitics

1/4 The news this week of the IMO stepping up and trying hard to get the seafarers out of the Gulf, especially on this day the #InternationalDayoftheSeafarer is welcome. But I wrote earlier this week about the inherent difficulties of doing so in the current climate. #Hormuz #Maritime #IranWar

Well - it is here. Timed for the International Day of the Seafarer. Available on Kindle Unlimited or for purchase (digital only at the moment I am afraid). Thank you for your support - and please keep thinking of those still trapped in the Gulf at this time. #Booksky #Geopolitics #HormuzCrisis

This might LOOK like madness... But... I made this all from scratch at 09:00 this morning and it has been in the fridge all day. It was one of my favourite lunches in South Korea working in the shipyards in the brutally hot summers there... "Ko-Bar" Dakganjeong

I don’t think I can express in words how thankful and happy this makes me 😱

It is a nice ceasefire and peace process you have there... Be a shame if something happened to it...

1/13 I am currently writing about the plight of seafarers during the Hormuz crisis. The more I look at it, the more I think the real story is not the war itself. It is how a system designed to protect seafarers ended up trapping them. #Shipping #Hormuz #Geopolitics #IranWar

@mrjamesob.bsky.social 06:35 today on @lbc.co.uk we are able to find out exactly why Nigel Farage is the "most attacked politician" in the UK ever... It is because "The Messiah 'Jesus O'Brien" is mean to him every day between 10 and 1..." 🤣

Welcome to the future. Where a bot tells the author of a book that he is wrong for suggesting that said bot can’t decide if I do an audio version of my own book 🤣🤣 #booksky #BraveNewWorld #TheHormuzCrisis

My 10th anniversary post. Says it all really…

1/14 For months the debate around Hormuz focused on a single question: Will Iran close the Strait? That always struck me as the wrong question. Not because closure was impossible, but because modern maritime systems rarely operate in binary terms. #Hormuz #Shipping

Only three days to go until Volume 1 of The Hormuz Crisis is officially released!! You can view and pre-order here: amzn.eu/d/02nHinaT And read a sample chapter on my website here: ashoro.co.uk/sample/hormu... #Booksky #TheHormuzCrisis #Geopolitics #IranUSAWar

It isn’t much of an “Outdoor Kitchen”… But it does mean I get to sit in the sun while making pizzas tonight 🤣

@mrjamesob.bsky.social Your assessment in a handy, post-able format.

And this is the inevitable result of Trump being incapable of not threatening people. This has so divided. Iran is a brutal, woman-hating, hard-line theocracy that spreads terror around the world. And yet - they have a point... #Dumbocracy #Trump

1/3 I am a simple seafarer - not a diplomat or a statesman or high-ranking official... But even I know that going into negotiations stating that the other side is looking to break international conventions and laws and saying you will do it instead if they don't agree, seems like a poor tactic...

Well the King has spoken... I guess that is it for Starmer then. Spitting Image called it as usual...

Another flash warning from the UKMTO for the Gulf of Aden. This is the 4th such attack in the last 7 days - all the same method - fast skiff attack - all successfully defended. This shows a clear ramp up of the Houthi proxies in the area - targeting the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. #IranWar #BabAlMandeb