Overview
- Houthi military spokesmen said they struck two Saudi oil tankers, Daisy and Wafa, with ballistic missiles and forced them to change course, a claim made public on Wednesday.
- The Saudi government has not independently confirmed the tanker strikes, while monitoring group UKMTO reported a loud explosion near a tanker and separate reports of a USV attack that sank a vessel.
- The group says its actions enforce a ‘blockade-for-blockade’ policy in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb to retaliate for restrictions on Houthi-held ports and Sanaa airport.
- Houthi ground offensives inside Yemen have also surged, killing dozens of government forces in Marib and Hadramout, and Saudi Aramco suspended operations at its Jazan facility after recent attacks.
- Riyadh has formed a Saudi-led maritime coalition to protect shipping, is weighing military and diplomatic responses, and the disruption risks higher shipping costs, rerouted trade and pressure on regional energy exports.