Houthis Hit Saudi Oil Ships as Trump Threatens Iran's Power Plants

Iran-backed Houthi fighters said they struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea on Thursday, threatening to block another key shipping route for the world's oil supply. The attacks came as the United States military carried out its 12th straight night of strikes on Iran. Together, these events are raising fears that a dangerous conflict in the Middle East could grow much larger.

President Donald Trump posted a warning on social media, saying that every time Iran fired missiles or drones at ships in the Strait of Hormuz, the US would destroy a bridge or power plant inside Iran, including in the capital Tehran. Iran responded with its own threat, saying it would strike oil, gas, and electricity infrastructure across the region. Hours later, Iran's Revolutionary Guards said the Strait of Hormuz was 'completely closed' to tankers that had not gotten Iran's permission to pass.

The Houthis are a group based in Yemen that control land near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a narrow waterway at the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. They said their forces used missiles and drones to hit two Saudi oil tankers called the Encelia and the Layla. Saudi state media confirmed the Encelia was struck and caught fire, and a maritime security source said the ship sent a distress call after being hit by a missile near the Saudi port of Jizan.

Because Iran has nearly shut down the Strait of Hormuz, millions of barrels of Saudi oil had been rerouted through the Red Sea to a port called Yanbu. Now, with the Houthis threatening that southern route too, oil tankers may need to take a much longer path through the Suez Canal. That would add weeks of travel time and raise shipping costs, which could mean higher prices for people around the world.

Iranian forces attacked US military bases in Kuwait on Thursday, hitting sites including Arifjan and Doha Camps. Iran also said it struck two other bases in Kuwait. Earlier in the week, Iran had attacked water and energy facilities in Kuwait and hit US military assets in Bahrain and Jordan as well.

US strikes on Iran have continued for 12 days, ever since a ceasefire fell apart in June. American attacks have spread from southern Iran to western and central parts of the country. Reports said the US struck a military target near Bushehr, close to Iran's only working nuclear power plant, and a missile attack on a border crossing between Iran and Iraq killed two people and wounded 11.

Iran says it still has the ability to launch missiles and drones despite nearly two weeks of US strikes. An Iranian health official said 53 civilians have been killed and 592 wounded since late last month. The war began on February 28, when the US and Israel launched strikes, and has since caused thousands of deaths and displaced millions of people.

Trump attended a ceremony at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to honor four US service members killed in recent Iranian attacks. 'For me, it's one of the hardest things to do as a president. But it has to be done,' Trump said. Later, in Georgia, he described the conflict differently, calling it 'a skirmish' — a word that usually means a small or minor fight.