Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed a missile and drone attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities in the southern city of Jizan and the Red Sea port of Yanbu on Saturday, as US President Donald Trump considered further military action against Iran.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group targeted sites belonging to Saudi state oil giant Aramco in response to Saudi-led coalition strikes on Houthi positions in Yemen the previous day. Video verified by media outlets showed a large plume of smoke rising near the Aramco facility in Jizan. Some missiles aimed at Yanbu were intercepted by air defence systems.
The attack followed the Houthis’ declaration of a naval blockade on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea and earlier strikes on Saudi oil tankers. Saudi forces had hit Houthi targets in Hodeida and elsewhere after the rebels targeted commercial vessels. The exchange risks reigniting a wider conflict between the kingdom and the Iran-aligned group.
At the same time, Trump had been weighing expanded strikes on Iran after nearly two weeks of US attacks. He told reporters he had not yet decided on a major operation, saying Tehran appeared to be taking talks more seriously. The US military paused its daily announcement of strikes on Iran that day.
The developments add pressure on Saudi Arabia, which has sought to avoid deeper involvement in the broader US-Iran conflict while facing threats from Iranian proxies in Yemen and Iraq. Oil prices had already surged above $100 a barrel amid the regional escalation.
