Cairo, July 23: Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea on Thursday, potentially opening a new front as the US military conducted its 12th night of strikes against Iran. The Houthis have threatened to shut down another key trade route. Iran and the US have meanwhile stepped up their attacks as they vie for control of the strait, setting off a scramble for alternative routes.
US President Donald Trump threatened “major military punishment” against the Houthis if their attacks on ships continue. “If they do this again, the US will hold Iran responsible, in that the Houthis are a Surrogate and/or Proxy of Iran, and major military punishment will be inflicted upon Iran and, of course, the Houthis themselves,” Trump wrote on social media.
As the rhetoric escalated, so did the economic fallout. The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil, the international standard, spiked 4.3 per cent Thursday to USD 98.16, its highest level since early June, before the two sides reached a preliminary peace agreement that has since collapsed.
Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi of Iraq, who has close ties to both the US and Iran, was in Tehran on Thursday to call for peace and dialogue, a spokesperson said. Al-Zaidi met with Trump earlier this month in Washington. An Arab diplomat said Gulf states are increasingly pessimistic about finding an off-ramp. The diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, said regional countries, in addition to Pakistan and Turkiye, continue to push for de-escalation.
The Houthis’ SABA news agency said the rebels had struck two tankers, the Encelia and the Layla, in the Red Sea, leading to fires on both. There were no reports of casualties.It was their first reported attack on a vessel since they announced a blockade of Saudi-linked shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait earlier this week in retaliation for the kingdom’s blockade on Yemen and a recent attack on the international airport in Yemen’s rebel-held capital, Sanaa. (AP)
