Trump's three-word threat as Iran opens up new front and oil surges to $100 per barrel

Sign up HERE to our DC Insider newsletter - your guide to what's rocking Washington, rattling the White House and setting tongues wagging on the Hill See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Published: 08:46 EDT, 23 July 2026 | Updated: 13:01 EDT, 23 July 2026 Iran-backed Houthi rebels have bombed ships in the Red Sea, opening up a terrifying new front in Donald Trump's war and prompting the President to threaten 'major military punishment.'The latest escalation in the Middle East has sent oil prices rocketing above $100 per barrel for the first time in two months.Yemen's militant group claimed attacks on two Saudi tankers Wednesday night - their first strike since declaring a blockade on the kingdom's shipping earlier this week. The Houthis fired on the vessels for breaching their embargo in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which is responsible for around 7 percent of the global oil trade.It came as US forces carried out a 12th consecutive night of strikes on Iran, prompting Trump to threaten additional 'punishment' on both Tehran and the Houthis. The US has escalated its air campaign with B-1 bomber strikes on Revolutionary Guard targets. The costly aircraft can haul two dozen 2,000lb bombs or dozens of cruise missiles.Analysts warn the rebels could cut off Saudi Arabia's alternative export route through the Red Sea known as the East-West Pipeline. If Iran's disruption is successful, it could tighten global supplies at a time when stockpiles are already running low.The squeeze is expected to reach household budgets within weeks due to higher crude prices pushing up the cost of gas, flights and everyday goods. Europe also faces economic turmoil from Tehran widening the war because the continent relies on Saudi diesel shipped through the Red Sea. Iran has launched a new front in its war with Donald Trump in the Middle East after the regime's proxy militants bombed oil tankers linked to US allies in the Red Sea Yemen's Houthi rebels, backed by Tehran, claimed responsibility for the attacks on two Saudi vessels Wednesday night Previous Iranian attacks damaged an Iraqi vessel moving through the Strait of Hormuz in March It came as US forces carried out a 12th consecutive night of strikes on Iran, and Trump warned that America would destroy an Iranian bridge or power plant for every ship targetedOil supplies for Britain, France, and Germany were already stretched by Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian refineries. In America, higher crude costs lead to inflation, raising costs for manufacturing and the service industry. The surge in energy costs poses a political headache for Trump, who campaigned on cheap gas. He now faces the prospect of $100 oil just months before Americans vote in November.Republicans defending slim majorities in Congress fear that pain at the pump, combined with an open-ended war, could hand Democrats a potent line of attack in the midterms.Some Republican lawmakers have begun to break away from Trump's military campaign against the regime, airing their doubts both privately and in public.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was grilled by Democrats and Republicans alike at a contentious Senate hearing on Tuesday as he pleaded for billions in emergency Pentagon funding.The war has cost the Pentagon $37.5 billion in the last few months. One GOP senator told Hegseth that Congress and the public need 'straighter answers' from the military. The US has bombed Iranian radar and missile systems along the Strait of Hormuz for nearly two weeks after Trump's ceasefire collapsed Fighting reignited two weeks ago after ceasefire talks between the US and Iran broke down, which triggered ten consecutive nights of strikes on regime targets.The US is trying to cripple Tehran's ability to menace commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.America accused Iran a few weeks ago of violating the Memorandum of Understanding by attacking oil tankers passing through the Persian Gulf.