Houthis claim Red Sea tanker strikes as US hits Iran again

Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed to have struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea on Wednesday, potentially opening a new front in the US-Iran war engulfing the region.

The claim came as the United States launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iranian military targets, marking the twelfth consecutive night of US attacks on Iran.

The Houthis said they had carried out missile and drone strikes on two Saudi tankers that "violated the blockade", naming the vessels as the Encelia and the Layla.

A vessel belonging to a Saudi company was hit while transiting the Red Sea, Saudi state media reported Thursday citing an official source. The source, quoted by state-run Saudi Press Agency, said "the vessel ENCELIA, belonging to a Saudi company, was targeted while sailing in the Red Sea, resulting in a fire at the bow of the ship" but that all crew members were safe.

British naval security monitor UKMTO said the master of a tanker reported being struck by an unknown projectile about 70 nautical miles southwest of Al Shuqaiq, causing a fire that the crew was fighting.

The Red Sea escalation followed a Houthi threat to blockade Saudi ports, widening the pressure on key Middle East shipping routes already shaken by fighting over the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump had threatened to destroy an Iranian bridge or power plant for every attack on shipping in Hormuz, drawing an "eye for an eye" warning from Tehran as both sides sharpened threats in the escalating war.

Fighting over the vital energy waterway has collapsed a preliminary deal between the United States and Iran, with Tehran reimposing its blockade and firing on vessels that seek to transit.

"Any time the Islamic Republic of Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, whether it be by Missile, Rocket, Drone, or any other device or weapon, the United States will bomb and destroy ONE BRIDGE OR POWER PLANT," Trump wrote on social media.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would respond in kind to any attack on its infrastructure.

"Our defence doctrine is clear: eye for an eye," Araghchi wrote on X. "Any aggression against Iran, including our infrastructure, will compel a powerful and decisive response."

Iran's state broadcaster quoted the military as saying that US threats "will have no result other than the expansion of the war".

Trump has faced intense political pressure to end the conflict, which Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday had cost the United States $37.5 billion, up from nearly $29 billion in mid-May.

But Trump rejected polls showing the war was unpopular as he headed to an airbase for the return of the remains of four US service personnel.

Three were killed in an Iranian attack on a military base in Jordan, and one died during a controlled detonation of an unexploded Iranian drone in Iraq.

"Americans don't want high gasoline prices but they're not against the war," Trump said.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, briefly topped $95 a barrel for the first time in nearly six weeks on Wednesday. Crude futures later shed some gains but were still up about three percent.

Iran says US forces fired missiles at the Shalamcheh border crossing, a key route between Iran and Iraq, killing two people near a passenger terminal.

Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi and Mohammed Vall reports. pic.twitter.com/Xqw9l2CYdX

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- US strikes -
US Central Command reported the latest strikes began at 2130 GMT Wednesday against Iranian military targets, saying it aimed to "further degrade Iran's ability to threaten civilian mariners and commercial vessels transiting regional waters".

Kuwait's army said early Thursday local time its air defences were intercepting hostile drones, following several days of Iranian strikes on the country.

"Kuwaiti air defences are currently responding to hostile drone threats," the army said on X. "Any explosions that may be heard are the result of air defence systems intercepting hostile targets."

Jordan said it had shot down four missiles and four drones, while air alert sirens sounded in Bahrain, where an AFP correspondent in Manama heard an explosion.

The Iranian military and its powerful Revolutionary Guards confirmed targeting US assets in all three countries.

- Red Sea threat -
Trump said he would "take care of" the Houthis if they followed through on their blockade threat against Saudi ports.

It remains unclear how fully the Houthis could enforce such a blockade, but the threat could compound the shock of the Hormuz closure, endangering Riyadh's ability to bypass the strait for some oil exports.

The Houthis had been broadcasting radio warnings to vessels, the International Chamber of Shipping told AFP.

The message warned that "in case of non-compliance of Yemeni armed forces decision, those ships will be in our target, over".

During the Gaza war that began in October 2023, the Iran-backed Yemeni rebels attacked shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, forcing vessels to make a long detour around Africa and prompting a US bombing campaign.

The latest threats appear to have been enough to encourage several vessels to reverse course before entering waters off Yemen, according to shipping tracker Kpler, though nearly 30 ships still crossed the Bab al-Mandab on Tuesday.

Maritime data analysed by AFP showed that at least nine ships had turned back from crossing the strait after the Houthi blockade announcement, including three that had taken on oil at Saudi Arabia's Red Sea Yanbu terminal.

Iran stops three oil tankers in Hormuz

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Thursday they stopped three oil tankers from passing through the Strait of Hormuz, as the United States and Iran vie for control over the vital waterway.

In recent weeks, Iran has hit tankers using a route hugging the Omani coast to traverse the strait, in a bid to strongarm vessels into using its own waters and pay for safe passage.

"Three oil tankers, provoked and tempted by the child-killing American army, were trying to pass through the mine-laid route south of the Strait of Hormuz, but after one of them exploded and caught fire, the other two quickly turned around and turned back," the Guards said in a statement quoted by Iranian state media.

The statement did not say when the incident happened.

"The powerful IRGC Navy emphasizes that the Strait of Hormuz is under our control... and any ship that is deceived by the US and intends to pass without coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran will suffer the same fate," the Guards added.

- Iran warns 'eye for an eye' -
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran would respond in kind to any attack on its infrastructure, after Washington threatened to bomb a bridge or power plant for every ship targeted in the Strait of Hormuz.

"Our defence doctrine is clear: eye for an eye. Any aggression against Iran, including our infrastructure, will compel a powerful and decisive response," Araghchi said on X.

Iran army vows to continue strikes

The Iranian army said Thursday that it would continue its strikes around the region until the attacks on Iran stopped, state television reported.

"The armed forces' retaliatory attacks will continue as long as the US attacks on the country's infrastructure and coastal areas continue," said army spokesperson Mohammad Akraminia according to state TV, adding that the country was ready for "every enemy scenario".

Sirens in Bahrain

Sirens sounded in Bahrain, the interior ministry said, with AFP correspondents hearing the alerts in the capital Manama, as the country comes under daily Iranian attacks.

"The siren has been sounded... Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place," the ministry said in a statement.

Jordan, Kuwait intercepts
The Jordanian and Kuwaiti militaries reported intercepting fresh salvos of Iranian missiles and drones on Thursday, with Iran's army and Revolutionary Guards saying they had targeted US assets in the countries.

Jordan's army said it had shot down three Iranian missiles on Thursday morning, while a fourth fell in an uninhabited area. Kuwait's military said overnight that it was also intercepting "hostile drone threats", without specifying their target.

Oman wants Houthi-Saudi talks
Oman, a key mediator between Yemen's Houthis and Saudi Arabia, said it was working to resume talks after the Iran-backed rebels hit a Saudi ship in the Red Sea a day earlier.

Oman's foreign ministry voiced "great concern" at the situation in the Red Sea, adding it was "currently working in coordination with its brothers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Yemeni parties, and the UN Special Envoy for Yemen with the aim of resuming the political process and roadmap to achieve security and stability in the region".

Rubio: Houthis 'suckered'
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that Yemen's Houthi rebels had been "suckered" into attacking Red Sea shipping by Iran.

"The Houthis largely were smart and stayed out of all this throughout the conflict, but they now apparently have gotten themselves suckered into this, going after Saudi Arabia and their ships," Rubio said on the sidelines of a Southeast Asian summit in Manila.

Iran hits US equipment in Jordan

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said that they had attacked and destroyed several American military assets in Jordan, including a radar for the US THAAD missile defence system, a Patriot system, a C-RAM radar and a helicopter hangar.

Iran strikes US bases in Kuwait

Iran's army and its Revolutionary Guards in separate statements claimed attacks on several US bases in Kuwait, including the Ali Al Salem base, Camp Udairi, Camp Doha, Camp Arifjan and a telecommunications tower.