Houthi-Saudi conflict intensifies with strikes on oil facilities and ships sunk in Hormuz

The conflict between Yemen's Houthi movement and Saudi Arabia reached a critical stage this week as both sides launched their most aggressive strikes in years. Houthi missiles repeatedly targeted Riyadh, forcing delays to international flights, and damaged an administrative building at Saudi Aramco's headquarters in Dhahran, starting a limited fire. The Houthis fired at least five missiles at Al-Maashiq Palace in Aden, the seat of Yemen's internationally recognised government, killing five people and wounding sixteen. Saudi Arabia reported intercepting a cruise missile aimed at the region near Medina, while debris from intercepted missiles injured civilians and damaged homes across Riyadh.

In response, the Saudi-led coalition struck Houthi fuel infrastructure near Sanaa, and the Houthis claimed to have destroyed a Saudi fighter jet over Saada province. Regional analysts warned that the intensity of fighting around Taiz and attacks on government and oil facilities signal a serious risk of the conflict expanding into a full-scale resumption of Yemen's civil war, with neighbouring states increasingly involved. Egypt's president pledged that Cairo would defend Saudi Arabia if requested, reflecting concerns about wider regional instability.

The fighting extended to global shipping lanes when two cargo vessels, the container ship GFS Pride and the bulk carrier Cape Dao, sank near the Strait of Hormuz after being struck by projectiles, killing at least one crew member. Maritime security sources described this as the sharpest increase in Iranian-linked attacks on commercial shipping since the outbreak of the wider regional conflict. Kristalina Georgieva, head of the International Monetary Fund, warned that the escalating confrontation could damage the global economy, given Saudi Arabia's position as the world's largest crude exporter and the critical importance of Hormuz for international oil transport.