Yemen's Houthi rebels are ready to respond to any US military action in the country, their foreign affairs official said Thursday, as the Iran-backed group's threat to blockade Saudi Arabia pushes oil above $95 a barrel and opens a second front in the widening Middle East conflict.
Yemen's Houthi rebels are ready to respond to any US military action in the country, their foreign affairs official said Thursday, as the Iran-backed group's threat to blockade Saudi Arabia pushes oil above $95 a barrel and opens a second front in the widening Middle East conflict.
The warning came after President Donald Trump said the US would "take care of it" if the Houthis disrupted Red Sea shipping, and as the US military carried out a 12th consecutive night of strikes against Iran — including the first deployment of B-1 long-range bombers in weeks. Brent crude traded at about $95 a barrel Thursday, up from roughly $90 on July 22, after the Houthis claimed attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea and declared a maritime blockade on the kingdom.
"The Houthi militia's attacks against Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea are unacceptable, violate international law, threaten freedom of navigation, and undermine regional peace and security," Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a statement after speaking with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Pakistan, alongside Qatar and Egypt, has proposed a 10-day ceasefire between the US and Iran to prevent the conflict from spreading into a wider regional war, according to Axios.
The Strait of Hormuz handles about 21% of global oil trade, and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait — the "Gate of Tears" connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden — is a critical chokepoint for Saudi crude exports. At least seven vessels have already changed course to avoid transiting the Bab al-Mandeb, the Institute for the Study of War said, while just 14 ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz in the past 24 hours, according to the Hormuz Strait Monitor. US retail gasoline prices have climbed back above $4 a gallon, threatening Trump and his Republican party ahead of November midterm elections.
A widening war with no end in sight
Iran flew between 10 and 21 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders, military advisers and missile- and drone-related equipment into Yemen on July 13, according to four sources including two Iranian officials, in a move designed to strengthen the Houthis' ability to threaten Red Sea shipping. The IRGC commanders are providing training on new missile systems, one source said, and Iran also sent gold to fund Houthi activities.
The US military said its latest strikes targeted Iranian maritime capabilities, missile and drone storage facilities, coastal surveillance sites and air defense assets. Iranian state media reported two people killed and 11 wounded in strikes near the Shalamcheh border crossing with Iraq. Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, warned of an "eye for an eye" response to any attack on Iranian infrastructure, after Trump threatened to destroy an Iranian bridge or power plant for every ship attacked in the Strait of Hormuz.
The war has cost the US $37.5 billion so far, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told senators Tuesday, up from $29 billion in late May. The House on Thursday narrowly passed a $95 billion funding package for the Pentagon and other priorities in a 216-214 vote, while also approving a largely symbolic resolution 214-208 directing Trump to halt military action unless Congress approves. The Senate blocked a similar measure 49-47 hours later.
Oil markets price in prolonged disruption
Goldman Sachs analysts said oil prices could climb to $120 a barrel by year-end if exports through Hormuz remain disrupted, according to the Guardian. Saudi Aramco has begun offering additional crude cargoes from Egypt's Mediterranean port of Sidi Kerir, signaling a potential shift in export routes as Houthi threats raise risks for Red Sea oil movements.
A Fox News poll found 66% of Americans disapprove of Trump's handling of the war, with only 34% approving. Trump has dismissed the polling, telling reporters traveling with him that "Americans aren't against the war" and that "they don't want high gasoline prices, but they're not against the war."
The last time a conflict threatened both the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb simultaneously was during the 2019 attacks on Saudi Aramco's Abqaiq and Khurais facilities, which temporarily knocked out 5.7 million barrels per day of production and sent crude prices soaring 15% in a single day. The current disruption, now in its 12th day of renewed hostilities, has already lasted longer and involves direct US-Iran military engagement — a scenario that Gulf oil producers are racing to hedge against by building pipeline bypass routes around Hormuz.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
