Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement escalated operations by firing ballistic missiles at a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea. Houthi military spokespersons claimed the strike was enforced due to violations of their declared maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia. The incident comes alongside renewed cross-border artillery exchanges along Yemen’s northern border. The escalation threatens to further disrupt commercial maritime traffic through the vital Bab el-Mandeb Strait, compounding the trade bottlenecks already created by the maritime standoff in the neighboring Persian Gulf.
