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President Donald Trump has threatened Iran with "major military punishment" following attacks by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, an escalation that has opened a second major front in the Middle East conflict and sent global oil prices soaring past $100 a barrel for the first time in two months. The president, writing on his Truth Social platform on Thursday, July 23, 2026, declared that the United States would hold Tehran accountable for any further attacks by the Yemeni group, which he described as a "Surrogate and/or Proxy of Iran". "If they do this again, the U.S. will hold Iran responsible," Trump wrote, warning that "major military punishment will be inflicted upon Iran and, of course, the Houthis, themselves".
The Houthis, who control large parts of northern and western Yemen, claimed responsibility for missile and drone strikes on two Saudi-flagged oil tankers, the Encelia and the Layla, which they said had violated a naval blockade they declared against Saudi ports earlier this week. The Saudi Press Agency confirmed that the Encelia was struck late Wednesday near the port of Jizan, causing a fire at the bow of the vessel, though all crew members were reported safe. A maritime security source said the ship had transmitted a distress call after being hit by a missile. The attack on the Layla could not be immediately confirmed, though Trump mentioned two separate strikes.
The assault on Saudi shipping marks a dangerous new phase in the conflict, extending the war to a second major maritime chokepoint. While the Strait of Hormuz has been the primary battleground since the war began five months ago, the Houthi threat to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait—the narrow gateway connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden through which approximately 12 per cent of global trade passes—has raised fears of a wider disruption to global energy supplies. The Houthis said their blockade was retaliation for Saudi Arabia's blockade on Yemen and a recent attack on the international airport in the rebel-held capital, Sana'a.
The escalation has already sent shockwaves through global oil markets. Brent crude rose more than 6 per cent, breaking through $100 a barrel for the first time since May, as traders priced in the risk of disruption to a second critical shipping lane. At least nine tankers have changed course following the Houthi blockade announcement, including three vessels that had taken on oil at Saudi Arabia's Red Sea terminal in Yanbu. The closure of Bab el-Mandeb would force vessels to take the much longer route around the Cape of Good Hope, adding two to three weeks to journeys between Asia and Europe.
The threats against Saudi shipping came as the U.S. military launched its 13th consecutive night of airstrikes on Iran, with the conflict showing no signs of abating two weeks after an interim truce collapsed. Iranian state media reported that missiles struck Qeshm Island on the Strait of Hormuz, the virtually closed waterway that has been the focus of the war. Four people were killed and five injured in a U.S. missile attack on the Iranian city of Ahvaz, state broadcaster IRIB said. Iran has responded by firing at neighbouring Arab countries hosting U.S. bases, with Jordan's army reporting it engaged four Iranian missiles and six drones in the past 24 hours. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also warned the UK that any base used to attack Iran was a "legitimate target" following reports that U.S. B-1 bombers had flown out of RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire.
Trump, in a separate interview with Axios, revealed he was seriously considering resuming large-scale combat operations against Iran and was "close to making a decision". "They haven't received enough pain yet," Trump was quoted as saying. He also announced that "any and all damages done" to cargo ships would be paid for with "Iranian Money," referring to frozen Iranian assets held by the United States. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Arachi responded with a sharp warning, saying on X that "seizing another nation's assets to pay for unrelated future claims is an incendiary precedent" that could lead to global chaos.
Amid the escalating confrontation, Trump also threw a diplomatic curveball by tying a civilian nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia to the kingdom's recognition of Israel. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the deal "will be approved, but is totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful Abraham Accords". Riyadh has long resisted joining the accords, insisting particularly on a pathway to a Palestinian state. The White House insisted that the Saudis knew the deal was contingent on recognizing Israel, despite the fact that it was not mentioned when the deal was announced. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Washington would "continue to have those conversations with our Saudi counterparts" to finalise a deal.
The Houthis, who came to power in Yemen in 2014, are part of Tehran's so-called "Axis of Resistance," a network of militant groups that includes Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. Ahmed Nagi, a senior Yemen analyst at the International Crisis Group, told Euronews that the threat to Saudi Arabia also benefits Iran at a time when the U.S. has resumed daily airstrikes. "From Iran's perspective, opening additional pressure points across the region gives it more leverage," Nagi said. "The Houthis provide Tehran with influence over one of the world's most important maritime chokepoints". As the U.S. military continues its nightly bombardment and Iran retaliates with missile and drone attacks on American positions across the region, the conflict shows no signs of de-escalation. With two of the world's most vital shipping lanes now threatened and oil prices climbing, the global economy is bracing for the impact of a war that has already killed thousands and shows no sign of abating.
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