Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said they struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, and Saudi state media confirmed one tanker caught fire, pushing the Iran crisis into a second major shipping chokepoint and sending global oil prices briefly above $100 a barrel.
Reuters, carried by Al-Monitor, reported that the Houthis claimed attacks on the Saudi tankers Encelia and Layla using missiles and drones. Saudi Arabia’s state news agency said an attack caused a fire on the bow of the Encelia, but all crew members were safe. Reuters said it could not immediately confirm the claimed attack on the Layla.
The Red Sea is now an active front
The new attack is a sharper development than earlier tanker diversions. The Houthis had already warned ships away from Saudi ports, but a confirmed fire aboard a Saudi-flagged tanker near the Red Sea route signals that the threat has moved from warning to execution.
Reuters reported that the Encelia sent a distress call after being struck near Saudi Arabia’s Jizan area. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency also reported a tanker incident in the same area, while maritime risk group Vanguard said a Saudi-flagged tanker had been hit by an unknown projectile about 70 nautical miles southwest of Al Shuqaiq.
That matters because Saudi Arabia has used Red Sea export routes as a workaround while the Strait of Hormuz remains under pressure from the broader U.S.-Iran conflict. If both Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb become unreliable, tankers face longer routes, higher insurance costs, and greater risk of supply disruption.
Oil reacts fast
CBS News reported that Brent crude briefly topped $100 a barrel Thursday before easing to $99.48 at 9:30 a.m. ET, while U.S. crude hit $90.74. CBS also reported that the U.S. national average gasoline price rose to $4.09 a gallon, up from $3.94 a week earlier, citing AAA data.
The price move reflects a simple fear: the Iran crisis is no longer stressing only one energy corridor. Bab el-Mandeb connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. It sits on the route for shipments moving between the Suez Canal, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
Trump threatens punishment
A separate Reuters report carried by Internazionale said President Donald Trump threatened “major military punishment” against Iran and the Houthis if the attacks continued. Trump said the U.S. would hold Iran responsible because the Houthis are Tehran’s proxy.
The same Reuters report said the U.S. carried out another round of overnight strikes on Iran, while Iran claimed attacks on U.S. military-linked targets in Jordan and Kuwait. Jordan’s army said it intercepted Iranian missiles and drones over the past 24 hours, with one missile falling in an uninhabited area.
Why this changes the crisis
The key change is not only that a tanker was hit. It is that the Red Sea route was supposed to relieve pressure from the Hormuz crisis. Instead, the conflict is now threatening both sides of the Arabian Peninsula at once.
Reuters reported that five tankers changed course in the Red Sea on Wednesday, with two signaling the Suez Canal as their new destination after the Houthi warning. That suggests shipping companies are already adjusting routes before the full cost of the new risk is clear.
For consumers, the first sign is oil and gasoline. For governments, the harder question is whether this becomes a maritime-security fight across two chokepoints instead of one. That would stretch naval planning, energy markets, and diplomacy at the same time.
Sources: Reuters via Al-Monitor; Reuters via Internazionale; CBS News; The Guardian live Middle East crisis updates.