Houthis say hit Saudi Arabia as Trump weighs harder Iran strikes

SANAA

University students gather for a demonstration to show their support for the Houthi movement amid escalating tensions with Saudi Arabia, at the Sanaa University campus in Yemen's Houthi-held capital Sanaa on July 22, 2026. (AFP)

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they launched a missile attack on the southern Saudi city of Jizan on July 25, hours after Saudi-led forces struck Houthi military sites in Yemen.

The Houthis said the missile caused fires in Jizan, but Saudi authorities did not confirm an impact. Saudi Civil Defense issued alerts in Jizan and the Red Sea port city of Yanbu before later announcing that the danger had passed.

The Saudi-led coalition said it struck Houthi sites in response to threats against commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

A Yemeni security source told AFP that a naval base in the port city of Hodeida and a military camp on Kamaran Island were among the targets.

The strikes followed the Houthis’ declaration of a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia and their claimed attacks on two Saudi ships. Saudi authorities confirmed that one vessel sustained minor damage but continued its voyage.

The escalation places further pressure on Red Sea shipping as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains severely disrupted by the conflict between the United States and Iran.

The U.S. military had not announced another round of attacks by early Saturday after reporting strikes on Iranian military targets for 13 consecutive nights.

President Donald Trump said he had not decided whether to authorize a larger operation against Iran, adding that Tehran was “getting more and more serious” in talks with Washington.

Trump said Iran could either reach an agreement or face a “much higher level” of strikes.

He reiterated that his red line was Iran moving close to developing a nuclear weapon.

Washington says its campaign is intended to stop Iran from closing the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial route for global oil shipments.

Iran said on July 24 that it targeted U.S. military assets in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait.

The Revolutionary Guards also claimed to have struck an Amazon data center in Bahrain, although neither Amazon nor Bahraini or U.S. authorities confirmed the claim.

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said air raid sirens sounded early Saturday and urged residents to take shelter.

Four U.S. service members have died in incidents linked to renewed Iranian attacks, according to the U.S. military.

Trump also dismissed reports that Russia and China were helping Tehran target U.S. forces, saying Presidents Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping had told him their countries would not become involved.

On the diplomatic front, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi in Kyrgyzstan and called for renewed negotiations and implementation of the preliminary memorandum aimed at ending the fighting, Xinhua reported.