Houthis Claim Ballistic Missile Hit on Saudi Oil Tanker

The Iran-aligned Houthi group in Yemen has claimed to have hit a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea using ballistic missiles. According to the Houthi military spokesperson, Yahya Saree, the attack was a 'precise hit' on the Saudi-flagged products tanker Wafaa. The tanker had been last seen transmitting on July 19 and had reportedly turned around after the Houthi announcement of a blockade in the area.

The Houthis have targeted a total of 8 Saudi tankers since announcing their threat to disrupt Saudi-linked shipping in the Red Sea. The group has also intercepted as many as 29 Saudi oil tankers, forcing them to turn back or preventing them from moving southward toward the Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint.

The attack is part of a larger escalation by the Houthis, who have vowed to disrupt shipping in the region despite reports of US-Iran talks. Saudi Arabia has rerouted some of its exports northward through Egypt and the Suez Canal while others have gone dark while transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.