Houthis claim strike on Saudi Arabia as Middle East conflict deepens

Houthi rebels claimed a missile strike on Saudi Arabia on Saturday, hours after vowing to retaliate against the kingdom for attacks as the Middle East conflict expanded.

Riyadh struck Houthi military targets in Hodeida on Friday, with rebel media reporting two wounded after the Yemeni group announced a maritime blockade of the top oil producer and hit its ships.

The flare-up marks a new front of the war that has engulfed the region following US-Israeli strikes on Tehran in February, and comes on top of Iran’s parallel blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, Riyadh’s only other maritime route.

The rebels had accused Saudi Arabia of a “dangerous escalation” and said its actions “will not go unanswered”.

The Houthis’ Ansarollah media said on Telegram early on Saturday that a “Yemeni missile strike” had sparked fires in the southern Saudi city of Jizan on the Red Sea.

Saudi Arabia did not immediately comment on the claim.

But Riyadh’s civil defence agency had issued brief warnings to residents in Jizan and Yanbu early Saturday for “potential danger”, only to lift the warnings minutes later.

Similar warnings have been issued in the past when missiles or drones were fired at the kingdom.

The warning came after the Saudi-led coalition said on Friday it had hit Houthi sites and destroyed targets threatening commercial vessels in response to attacks on Red Sea shipping.

A Yemeni security source told AFP a naval base in the port city of Hodeida and a military camp on Kamaran island were among the Saudi targets.

The Houthis claimed attacks on two Saudi ships earlier this week, with Saudi Arabia confirming one of the attacks in the Red Sea.

Blockade

The Yemeni security source, who requested anonymity, said the Saudi strikes targeted a telecommunications building near Hodeida’s port and a naval base at Ras al-Kathib in Hodeida.

The Houthis’ al-Masirah television channel said two people were wounded — a worker in Hodeida and a woman on Kamaran island.

It said a telecoms building had been hit in Hodeida.

On Monday, the rebels had warned in a radio message to ships that they would target vessels “belonging to (the) Saudi enemy” that do not comply with their blockade.

Saudi state media cited a transport authority official on Friday as saying “the vessel (NCC MASA), belonging to a Saudi company, was targeted while sailing in the Red Sea today … resulting in minor damage to the vessel’s hull”.

The ship resumed its course, the SPA added.

Red Sea access has become vital for Saudi Arabia to keep shipping oil as traffic in Hormuz is disrupted.

‘Tipping point’

The escalation came after Trump said he would hold off on a major operation as Tehran was now getting “serious” in talks with Washington.

“No I haven’t,” Trump told journalists in the Oval Office when asked if he had made a decision on hitting Iran hard, for now dialing back reports that he was increasingly frustrated with the war and mulling a large-scale military operation.

“Look, we’re talking to them right now. I think they’re getting more and more serious as the days go by, for maybe the obvious reason.”

Trump said Iran had a choice between making a deal or facing a “much higher level” of strikes, after nearly two weeks of US attacks that have left a ceasefire in tatters.

The war that Trump once predicted would last four or five weeks is now nearing its fifth month, and is weighing on the Republican’s approval ratings ahead of crucial US midterm elections in November.

Trump added that he did not know what the “tipping point” would be for a decision, but reiterated that his red line would be if Iran was close to developing a nuclear weapon.

The United States says it is carrying out the strikes to stop Iran closing the crucial Strait of Hormuz. Iran has responded with strikes on US bases that have killed four service members.

The Iranian military said on Friday it had carried out attacks targeting US military assets in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, meanwhile, said they had targeted an Amazon data center in Bahrain, according to state media, though neither the US tech giant nor Bahrain has commented on the claim.

There was also no confirmation from the United States of any targeting of its facilities or personnel. In Bahrain, sirens sounded again early on Saturday, the interior ministry said, urging residents to take shelter.