Houthi Attacks Put Pressure on Saudi Oil Exports Amid Yemen War
Riyadh is facing a delicate dilemma as attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis continue to target Saudi Arabia's oil industry.
The recent missile-and-drone assault has set energy facilities ablaze and wounded dozens, prompting a response from Saudi jets with dozens of airstrikes.
Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, is desperate to avoid returning to full-scale war in Yemen, where tens of thousands of strikes from the Saudi-led coalition hammered Houthi-held areas until a ceasefire in 2022.
The economic dimension is crucial for Saudi Arabia, with disruptions near the Strait of Hormuz and Houthi pressure on shipping in the Red Sea threatening oil exports.
Riyadh has been redirecting oil exports via pipeline to the western Saudi coast, but Houthi attacks on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea are putting this workaround under threat.