Houthis Claim Missile Attack on Saudi Arabia amid Escalating Regional Tensions

Early on Saturday, Houthi media on Telegram announced a missile strike that set fires in the Saudi coastal city of Jizan. The announcement followed Friday’s Saudi air strikes on Houthi‑linked targets in the Yemeni port of Hodeidah and nearby Kamaran island.

The Houthis, an Iran‑backed group, have vowed retaliation. They described the Saudi attacks on civilian sites as a dangerous escalation and warned that “recent crimes will not go unanswered.” The Saudi government issued emergency alerts for the province but did not immediately respond to the claim.

In the surrounding region, the U.S. military continued a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz. On Friday, U.S. forces reportedly disabled a tanker attempting to evade the blockade. The incident marked the second commercial ship to be disabled since the U.S. re‑imposed its restrictions earlier this month.

Oil prices reacted to the heightened threat. The price of Brent crude briefly exceeded $100 per barrel, the highest since May, before falling with the passage of two Chinese‑chartered super‑tankers through the Bab el‑Mandeb Strait.

Diplomatic efforts are ongoing. An Omani delegation met with Iranian officials in Tehran to discuss the Strait of Hormuz, while the U.S. announced a conference in London next week to tackle maritime security, with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and the U.S. Joint Chiefs expected to attend.

This confrontation comes after a deal in June where the U.S. and Iran agreed on a 14‑point Memorandum of Understanding to halt hostilities and reopen the strait, a ceasefire that was reportedly abandoned following Iranian attacks on ships in the area.