THE conflict involving Iran expanded further over the weekend despite a pause in US strikes, as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis attacked Saudi oil installations along the Red Sea coast and Tehran accused Ukraine of targeting an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea.
Reuters reported the US military saying on Saturday that its naval blockade against Iran remained "in full effect", but did not provide an explanation for the halt in a series of 13 consecutive nights of escalating strikes.
There were also no reports over the weekend of Iranian attacks on neighbouring countries, following days of retaliatory strikes in response to US military action.
A senior official in President Donald Trump’s administration said Trump had consistently favoured diplomacy but had demonstrated the consequences Iran would face if it failed to engage seriously in negotiations.
"President Trump has always been clear that his preference is diplomacy, but he has shown Iran what will happen if they fail to come to the table in a serious way," the official said.
The New York Times reported that Trump had decided, for now, to step back from plans to intensify attacks on Iran, citing officials briefed on the discussions.
The report said Trump and his advisers were concerned about widening the conflict, exhausting US military stockpiles, straining relations with Gulf allies, and creating further disruption to energy supplies and the global economy.
Vice President JD Vance and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine also raised concerns over US ammunition reserves during a White House meeting on Friday, according to a US official cited by CNN.
A Department of Defense source said military operations were "on hold" on Saturday.
However, fighting involving Iran’s Houthi allies and Saudi Arabia demonstrated that the conflict could spread beyond the Gulf region, potentially threatening another major shipping route and reigniting Yemen’s long-running civil war.
Separately, Iran’s Foreign Ministry accused Ukraine of attacking an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, claiming one sailor was killed and another injured.
Iran summoned Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires in Tehran to protest against what it described as a "hostile and criminal" attack, state news agency IRNA reported.
The accusation came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Kyiv had observed Russia sharing satellite information from the Middle East with Iran to help direct attacks in the region.
Houthi Attacks Raise Fears of Yemen War Return
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group had targeted facilities belonging to Saudi state oil giant Aramco in Jizan and Yanbu on Saturday.
Video footage verified by Reuters showed a large column of smoke rising near the Aramco refinery in Jizan, close to the Yemen border. The refinery has the capacity to process up to 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily.
Two Asia-based trading sources said they had received information about possible damage to fuel and oil storage facilities in Jizan. Aramco did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In Yanbu, two missiles targeting oil facilities were intercepted by air defences. The Red Sea port is a key export route for Saudi oil shipments that bypass the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has blockaded.
Saudi-Backed Forces Strike Houthi Positions
In Yemen, officials said the air force of the Saudi-backed internationally recognised government carried out strikes against Houthi positions in Marib and Al-Jawf provinces.
The officials said both sides had begun mobilising forces along front lines, raising fears that Yemen’s fragile ceasefire could collapse completely.
Saudi Arabia has led an Arab coalition against the Houthis since the Iran-aligned group seized Yemen’s capital, Sana’a.
The conflict, which caused widespread famine and killed hundreds of thousands of people, had remained largely paused under a ceasefire agreement since 2022.
However, the truce broke down this month after the Houthis became directly involved in the wider regional conflict following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran.
The Houthis have declared a naval blockade targeting Saudi Arabia in recent days, with Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi warning that Saudi oil facilities could become targets. - July 26, 2026
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