RIYADH/DUBAI | Saudi Arabia intensified airstrikes against Houthi positions in Yemen on Wednesday as the Iran-aligned group consolidated rapid territorial gains along the country’s Red Sea coast, opening a new and increasingly consequential front in the wider Middle East conflict, Reuters reported.
The Houthis said Saudi warplanes struck targets in Yemen as Riyadh responded to the group’s advance toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints. Saudi Arabia has also faced a series of Houthi missile and drone attacks on its territory and energy infrastructure.
The escalation followed the Houthi capture of the coastal city of Mocha and their advance onto Perim Island, which sits in the Bab el-Mandeb between Yemen and the Horn of Africa. Reuters reported that the group has also reached other islands near the strategic waterway, strengthening its position along a route linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean.
Saudi Arabia said its air defenses separately intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone south of Mecca before it entered restricted airspace over the holy city. Saudi coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki called any threat to Mecca a red line. The Houthis denied targeting Mecca or other religious sites, saying the Saudi allegation was intended for propaganda purposes. Reuters reported that there was no independent confirmation of the intended target of the drone.
The developments came alongside a reported secret meeting between U.S. officials and Houthi representatives at the U.S. Embassy in Muscat, Oman, over the weekend. Five sources told Reuters that the meeting was facilitated by Oman and included senior Houthi figures Mohammad Abdulsalam and Abdelmalek al-Ajri. The U.S. State Department did not confirm the meeting but reiterated Washington’s focus on maritime security in the Red Sea.
According to the sources cited by Reuters, the Houthis told U.S. officials they would not attack American or Israeli vessels and would maintain the ceasefire reached with Washington in May 2025, while reserving the right to attack Saudi shipping. The reported discussions underscore the complicated diplomatic picture, with Washington communicating with the Houthis while also supporting Saudi Arabia with intelligence and targeting assistance.
The humanitarian consequences have already been severe. The United Nations refugee agency said more than 100,000 people had been displaced inside Yemen by the renewed fighting, while thousands more had crossed the Red Sea to Djibouti. Humanitarian operations have been hampered by insecurity, damaged infrastructure, disrupted communications and restrictions on movement.
The current fighting marks a major reversal from the relative calm that followed a U.N.-brokered truce in 2022. Yemen’s civil war intensified after the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, in 2014, prompting Saudi Arabia and its allies to intervene militarily in 2015 in support of Yemen’s internationally recognized government. Years of fighting produced widespread civilian suffering without restoring full government control.
The Houthis subsequently became a major regional security actor. Beginning in late 2023, the group launched attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea, saying the operations were linked to the war in Gaza. The attacks prompted military responses from the United States and its allies and forced many shipping companies to reroute vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, increasing travel times and costs.
The strategic importance of the latest territorial gains extends beyond Yemen. The Bab el-Mandeb is only about 18 miles wide at its narrowest point and connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, forming part of the maritime route between Asia and Europe through the Suez Canal. Reuters has reported that the waterway carries a significant share of global oil and commodity traffic.
The conflict is also putting additional pressure on global energy markets. Saudi Arabia’s East-West oil pipeline, which allows crude to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, was recently disrupted by a drone attack that Riyadh attributed to Iran-aligned fighters. Saudi authorities have since sought alternative routes for crude exports, while oil prices remain above $100 a barrel amid wider regional disruptions.
With the Houthis expanding their position along Yemen’s western coast, Saudi Arabia increasing military action and U.S.-Houthi contacts continuing through Oman, the latest developments have placed Yemen once again at the center of a broader regional struggle involving security, energy supplies and some of the world’s busiest shipping routes.
Edgardo Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
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