Saudi warplanes struck Yemen on Wednesday as Iran-backed Houthi fighters consolidated a rapid advance along the Red Sea coast, extending Tehran's reach in the wider Middle East war. Brent crude hovered near $108 a barrel, close to its highest level since May, as the fighting adds to a region already disrupting global energy supplies.
Saudi warplanes pounded Yemen on Wednesday, the Houthis said, as the Iran-backed fighters solidified gains from a lightning advance that has extended Tehran's reach in the Middle East war. The United States responded by tightening its travel warning for Saudi Arabia, banning government employees from traveling within 20 miles of the Yemen border.
Houthis claim fighter jet, hundreds of strikes
The Houthis have swept through Yemeni towns along the Red Sea coast and seized islands in the Bab el-Mandeb strait since last week. Overnight battlefield video showed fighters seizing armored vehicles from Saudi-backed forces while warplanes flew overhead and explosions billowed from desert dunes.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group had shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet, though no evidence was presented and Saudi officials did not respond to requests for comment. Saree also said the Saudis had carried out as many as 450 air strikes on Yemen this week. Officials in the Saudi-backed government controlling southern Yemen acknowledged strikes on Houthi positions, though Riyadh itself has not confirmed them.
Riyadh said its air defenses shot down a Houthi drone south of Mecca on Tuesday before it could enter prohibited airspace over the holy city, calling the attack a crossing of a red line that threatened shrines sacred to all Muslims. Saree denied the Houthis had targeted Mecca, calling the Saudi account a propaganda setup.
Oil markets track the pipeline outage
The conflict's spillover threatens to worsen a global energy shortage caused by the six-month-old U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, which has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. An attack blamed on Iran-aligned fighters in Iraq last week knocked out Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline, the main route used to divert oil exports from the blockaded strait.
Brent crude hovered around $108 a barrel on Wednesday, near its highest level since May. U.S. retail diesel prices, separately, hit an all-time high above $6.30 a gallon. Traders say a prolonged pipeline closure could cut off as much as 4% of global oil supply, though U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNBC on Tuesday that crude should be flowing again within days.
Trump weighs deeper involvement
Saudi Arabia has led a coalition against the Houthis since 2015, and the conflict had largely quieted under a ceasefire in recent years. It reignited after the Houthis declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia in July and fired at southern areas of the kingdom, then intensified sharply this month as the group pushed back forces aligned with the internationally recognized Yemeni government.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman phoned 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 before halting the campaign under what Trump described as a ceasefire that would halt attacks on ships. Trump now faces a choice between standing by as the energy crisis deepens or extending direct U.S. military involvement into a new theatre.
Source: Investing.com
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