Houthis claim attack on two Saudi tankers

Yemen’s Houthi militia has claimed responsibility for attacking two Saudi Arabian oil tankers. The Iranian-aligned group announced this on Thursday. A Saudi news agency later confirmed that one of the tankers caught fire in the Red Sea.

This threat of a new conflict area emerged as the US military continued its strikes on Iran for the 12th consecutive night. These attacks have now expanded to western and central Iran.

The Houthis stated they attacked the tankers, named Encelia and Layla, claiming the vessels had ignored a naval blockade the group had imposed on Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea. The group also said they used ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones, in the attacks.

Saudi news outlet SPA reported that an attack caused a fire on the front of the Encelia. Fortunately, all crew members were reported safe. The report did not specify who was responsible for the attack.

Earlier on Thursday, a maritime security source indicated that the Encelia had sent a distress call. The ship reported being hit by a missile near Saudi Arabia’s Jizan port in the Red Sea and that it was on fire. The British maritime risk management group Vanguard also confirmed that the Saudi-flagged tanker Encelia was struck by an unknown object approximately 70 nautical miles off the coast of Al Shuqaiq.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency (UKMTO) confirmed receiving a report of an incident in the same area. They stated that the captain of a tanker reported being struck by an unknown projectile, which started a fire onboard. While details matched Vanguard’s report, it was not immediately clear if this referred to the Encelia.

In their statement about attacking the two tankers, the Houthis claimed they had caused about 10 ships to turn away. Ship-tracking data showed that five tankers changed their routes in the Red Sea on Wednesday. Two of them indicated the Suez Canal as their new destination after the Houthis warned ships to avoid Saudi ports.

This incident in the Red Sea occurred shortly after President Trump had vowed to destroy Iranian infrastructure, such as bridges or power plants, for every ship Iran attacked in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran had stated it would retaliate against such threats.

The US attacks on Thursday lasted five hours and targeted Iranian military sites. These included facilities for maritime weapons, missile and drone storage, coastal monitoring, and air defence systems. Iranian media reported that the US attacked a military target near Bushehr, where Iran’s only commercial nuclear power reactor is located, on two separate occasions on Thursday. This marks three strikes in that area within two days.

State TV in Iran reported that two people were killed and 11 others injured in what a local official described as a US missile strike on the Shalamcheh border crossing with Iraq. Despite positive statements from Washington, Iran has shown it still possesses significant missile and drone capabilities. Earlier this week, Iran attacked vital water purification and energy plants in Kuwait and also targeted US military assets there. US allies Bahrain and Jordan have also experienced attacks in recent days.

An Iranian health ministry official stated that 53 civilians have been killed and 592 wounded since late last month. Since the conflict between the US and Israel began on 28 February, thousands of people have lost their lives and millions have been displaced.

The war has also resulted in the deaths of 18 US service members and injured over 450 troops. President Trump attended a ceremony on Wednesday at Dover air force base to honor four US service members who were killed in Iranian attacks on military bases in recent days. Trump commented that such acts were among the most difficult presidential duties but were necessary.