Global crude prices surged past US$100 a barrel as Houthi attacks on two Saudi tankers in the Red Sea extended the Middle East war to a second major shipping chokepoint, prompting President Donald Trump to warn of major military punishment for Iran.
Red Sea Tanker Attacks Open a Second Shipping Front
The conflict in the Middle East widened sharply as Yemeni fighters struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, extending the Middle East war to a second major shipping chokepoint. The Houthis, who control northern and western Yemen, announced they were imposing a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia. According to shiptracking data, the disruption forced tankers to change course away from the Bab el-Mandeb strait, while traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell to just one tanker.
Maritime security sources reported that the tanker Encelia sent a distress call after being struck by a missile near the Saudi port of Jizan. Saudi state media confirmed that the strike caused a fire at the bow. Brent crude rose more than 6 percent, breaking through US$100 a barrel for the first time since May, as shipping insurance costs through the southern Red Sea doubled for some companies.
Washington and Tehran Trade Direct Warnings
United States President Donald Trump responded to the maritime strikes by vowing immediate accountability for Iran, which officials describe as the backer of the Houthi movement. Trump warned that any further aggression would bring severe consequences.
Trump added on social media that cargo ship damages would be covered using frozen Iranian assets held by the United States. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Arachi condemned the proposal on X, warning that seizing another nation’s assets to pay for unrelated future claims is an incendiary precedent
and stating that ensuing chaos will not be pretty or peaceful.
Meanwhile, sources in Iran and Yemen told reporting outlets that Iran had transferred Revolutionary Guard commanders and missile equipment into Yemen shortly before the Houthi blockade was declared.
Regional Escalation Spills Over Into Jordan and Kuwait
The military confrontation continued past maritime lanes as Iranian state media reported missile strikes on Qeshm Island near the Strait of Hormuz during a campaign that marked a thirteenth consecutive night of air strikes. Iran also reported launching attacks against US military installations and fuel storage sites in Jordan and Kuwait.
Jordanian military authorities confirmed they engaged four incoming missiles and six drones, intercepting all but one missile, which landed in an uninhabited area. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed they targeted a US electronic warfare unit at the Al-Adiri base in Kuwait in retaliation for an overnight strike on the Shalamcheh border crossing with Iraq. Neither Washington nor Kuwait reported casualties at the base, though a separate US missile attack in the Iranian city of Ahvaz killed four people and injured five, according to state broadcaster IRIB.
Commercial Pressures and Diplomatic Friction for Saudi Arabia
The widening crisis has directly complicated Saudi Arabia’s energy export strategy. University of Otago international relations professor Robert Patman noted that Saudi Arabia has been using the Red Sea route as an alternative export channel to bypass the Strait of Hormuz amid ongoing disruptions.
The Houthi blockade has disrupted that workaround, catching Riyadh off guard. Diplomatic tensions increased simultaneously when Washington and Saudi Arabia signed a civilian nuclear agreement, only for Trump to insist the deal remain unoperationalised unless Saudi Arabia normalises relations with Israel under the framework of the Abraham Accords.
