Iran-backed Houthis threaten world’s largest oil facility amid escalating attacks

Iran-backed Houthi rebels are now positioned to threaten Saudi Arabia’s 745-mile pipeline and the world’s largest oil processing plant, escalating risks to global fuel supplies, according to a report by New York Post.

The Houthis’ rapid advance through Yemen’s coast has given them control of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, threatening the Abqaiq oil facility, compared to the “Panama Canal of global energy markets.” Experts believe the group was behind an attack on Saudi’s East-West pipeline, which moves 4 million barrels of crude daily.

Saudi crude exports through its Red Sea port dropped to 2.5 million barrels a day in August, down from 4.6 million in July. Brent crude soared past $109 per barrel following the pipeline attack.

President Trump downplayed the crisis, calling it an internal Yemen-Saudi matter, while Vice President JD Vance confirmed the US is in direct talks with the Houthis.