Saudi Arabia Faces a New Crisis as Houthi Attacks Spread

Saudi Arabia faces attacks at home and a Houthi offensive across the border in Yemen. A drone attack has disabled the kingdom’s East-West Pipeline, while missiles and drones have struck Saudi cities. At the same time, Houthi fighters have advanced against forces backed by Riyadh.

For months, Saudi Arabia had been less exposed to the war on Iran than some of its smaller neighbours. Its East-West Pipeline gave it a way to send oil to the Red Sea without passing through the Strait of Hormuz. That route has now been disrupted.

The pipeline was disabled in a drone attack attributed to Iran-aligned militias in Iraq. Oil loading at Yanbu, the Red Sea port where the pipeline ends, has been suspended. Saudi Arabia has also cancelled some shipments to Europe.

Houthi attacks have added to the pressure. Saudi air defences shot down a drone near Mecca, Islam’s holiest city. The Houthis have denied targeting Mecca.

Saudi Arabia must now defend its cities and oil facilities while helping its allies in Yemen resist the Houthi advance. Middle East Eye reported that Riyadh has received little sign that its partners are willing to join a wider fight.

Saudi Arabia’s allies face pressure in Yemen

The Houthis have advanced along Yemen’s Red Sea coast and gained control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The waterway is important to ships travelling between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The Houthis are also pushing toward Taiz and Marib, two cities whose loss would be a severe setback for Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

Saudi Arabia does not appear eager to send ground troops back into Yemen. Yet some of the forces it has supported have struggled to stop the Houthi advance. The National Resistance Forces, which previously received support from the United Arab Emirates, lost ground along the coast.

Bernard Haykel, a professor at Princeton University, told Middle East Eye that the Southern Transitional Council, or STC, appears to be among the Yemeni forces most capable of fighting the Houthis. But the STC seeks an independent southern Yemen. Its ambitions have long complicated efforts to build a united front.

The UAE’s support for the STC has also strained its relations with Saudi Arabia. That leaves Riyadh with difficult choices about which Yemeni forces it can rely on and what support those forces would demand in return.

Saudi Arabia has sought stronger defense ties with Türkiye and Pakistan. So far, those partnerships have not brought either country into the fight with the Houthis. Neil Quilliam, a Gulf specialist at Chatham House, told Middle East Eye that Saudi Arabia has few clear options and limited support from its allies.

A return to war carries risks

Saudi Arabia led a military intervention in Yemen a decade ago. That campaign did not defeat the Houthis, and Riyadh later tried to reduce its involvement. A ceasefire in 2022 sharply reduced the fighting, but it did not produce a lasting political settlement.

Restrictions on ports and airports in Houthi-held areas have remained a major point of dispute. The Houthis say they will continue blocking Saudi shipping until those facilities can operate freely.

A new Saudi air campaign could raise the cost of Houthi attacks. It could also draw the kingdom back into a long war. That risk comes as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman pursues investments in tourism, technology and other industries through Vision 2030. Attacks on cities and oil infrastructure threaten those plans.

Some analysts interviewed by Middle East Eye questioned why Saudi Arabia did not use its air force earlier to slow the Houthi advance along the Red Sea coast. Others said Riyadh may have been reluctant to act without stronger US support.

Washington has shown little interest in entering another direct fight with the Houthis. President Donald Trump said the group had indicated it did not want to fight the United States. Reuters also reported that US officials met Houthi representatives in talks arranged by Oman.

For Saudi Arabia, a US-Houthi understanding would not resolve the attacks on its own territory. Riyadh still has to decide how to protect its oil facilities, support its allies in Yemen and respond to the Houthi threat.

Negotiation or military pressure

The conflict is also tied to the wider confrontation with Iran. The Houthis have links with Tehran, though they make their own decisions. Iran and Gulf states have been discussing how to restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Saudi Arabia could pursue talks with Iran while increasing pressure on the Houthis. It could also seek more international support to secure the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Neither course offers a quick solution to the fighting inside Yemen.

Saudi analysts told Middle East Eye that a full ground campaign would risk repeating the problems of the earlier intervention. They described a more limited approach: strikes aimed at stopping attacks on Saudi infrastructure, alongside negotiations that could reduce the fighting.

Any agreement would have to address the Houthis’ demands over ports, airports and shipping. Saudi leaders would also have to weigh the cost of concessions against the cost of a renewed war.

For now, the kingdom is defending itself on two fronts. Its pipeline remains out of action, its cities face attacks, and its allies in Yemen are under pressure. Riyadh’s next move will depend in part on how much help its partners are prepared to provide.