Saudi warplanes attack Yemen as Houthis solidify gains

Saudi warplanes pounded Yemen, Houthi militants said ‌on Wednesday, as the Iran-backed fighters solidified their gains following a lightning advance that has extended Tehran’s reach in the Middle East war and further disrupted global oil supplies.The Iran-backed Houthis, who since last week have swept through Yemeni towns along the Red Sea coast and seized islands in the Bab el-Mandeb strait at its mouth, released battlefield video overnight of fighters seizing armoured vehicles from Saudi-backed forces. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group had launched fresh drone and missile strikes on the main Saudi Red Sea oil port ​of Yanbu, and at a southern Saudi airbase at Khamis Mushait. He did not say when the strikes had taken place. Both cities were ⁠among a wide range of locations where Saudi Arabia announced alerts on Tuesday, although there were no similar announcements on Wednesday.Saudi officials and oil company Aramco did not immediately respond to ​emails seeking comment.READ MOREEarlier, Saree said the Houthis had also shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet. No immediate evidence was presented.Saree said the Saudis had carried out as many as 450 air strikes on Yemen this week. Officials in the Saudi-backed government ‌that ‌controls ​southern Yemen have acknowledged that their forces and those of Saudi Arabia were conducting air strikes on Houthi positions, though Riyadh has not confirmed them.The Houthis have fired repeatedly into Saudi Arabia over the past week, causing alarms over cities in ⁠the south and west. An attack blamed on Iran-aligned fighters in Iraq ​last week also knocked out Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline, the main route used to ​divert exports away from the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.The Houthis have captured more territory near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Image: AP Riyadh said its air defences had shot down a Houthi drone south of Mecca on Tuesday before it entered prohibited ‌airspace over the holy city, an attack it said crossed ​a “red line” of threatening shrines sacred to all Muslims. Houthi spokesperson Saree denied the group had targeted Mecca, and said the Saudi reports were ⁠propaganda.The extension of ⁠the war into Yemen threatens to worsen ​the global energy supply shortage caused by the six-month-old US-Israeli war on Iran, which has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The price of Brent crude hovered around $108 a barrel on Wednesday, close to its highest level since May. Traders say a prolonged closure of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline could cut off as much as 4 per cent of global oil supply. Saudi Arabia has not said when operations might resume, but US energy secretary Chris Wright told CNBC on Tuesday that crude oil should be flowing through the pipeline within days.[ Iran’s allies squeeze Saudi Arabia ‘on all fronts’, leaving crown prince facing a crisisOpens in new window ]Saudi Arabia has led a coalition battling the Houthis since 2015. The conflict had largely ‌quietened under a ceasefire in recent years, ⁠but reignited when the Houthis declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia in July and fired at southern areas in the kingdom. Violence has intensified sharply this month as the militant group pushed back forces aligned with the Saudi-backed internationally recognised Yemeni government. Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed ‌bin Salman phoned US president Donald Trump last week seeking military support, which so far has been limited to intelligence aid.The United States bombed the Houthis for two months in 2025, but halted that ​campaign after reaching what Trump described as a ceasefire with the group.Trump now faces a dilemma ​of whether to stand by and risk the Houthi advance worsening the global energy crisis, or provide more direct military support to the Saudis and risk extending the costly US intervention to another part of the Middle East. – Reuters[ Houthis have seized a crucial Red Sea port. Why is it so significant?Opens in new window ]