Houthi offensive pushes oil prices up while Yemenis face worsening humanitarian crisis
Renewed Houthi attacks along the Red Sea have spiked global fuel prices and forced over 125,000 Yemenis, including pregnant women, to flee their homes.
Houthi forces advancing down Yemen's Red Sea coast have threatened a vital oil shipping lane, prompting a rise in global fuel prices as Saudi exports are jeopardised. The fighting has displaced over 125,000 people, many carrying only what they can bear, with families like Eshraq Abdel Gelil and Mohamed Thabet walking over five kilometres before catching a vehicle to Taiz, where they now share cramped housing and struggle to afford two meals a day.
The UN humanitarian office recorded eight civilian fatalities and 32 wounded, while UNICEF noted that more than 57,000 children are among the displaced. Aid groups warn of severe food insecurity, lack of medical supplies, and inadequate shelter, with reports of malnourished children and pregnant women at risk of miscarriage. Humanitarian workers stress the need for food, maternal health care, hygiene items, and mental-health support as the crisis deepens.
Why it matters
The conflict raises oil prices worldwide and deepens a humanitarian emergency affecting millions in Yemen.
How this story developed
- Sep 8 Houthi strikes wound dozens in Saudi cities as coalition vows retaliation
- Sep 12 Experts noted Iran now influences both the Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab chokepoints.
- Sep 13 Houthis announced a drone and missile strike on Saudi Sharurah military base.
- Sep 13 Iraq seized a drone‑launching platform suspected of being used in the strike and dismissed the Maysan provincial commander.
- Sep 13 Saudi east‑west oil pipeline shut after a drone strike.
- Sep 13 Houthis allege Saudi forces carried out more than 50 attacks on their targets in a single day.
- Sep 14 In a post on X, the European Commission President condemned the Houthi assault on Saudi and American military sites, calling it an act of aggression. She stressed that the EU will continue cooperating with Gulf partners to ensure secure, free shipping through the Hormuz Strait. The statement also highlighted the broader goal of Middle-East stability, which the EU views as a shared interest. The Houthi group claimed to have launched dozens of ballistic missiles and drones, citing retaliation for Saudi air strikes in Yemen. Saudi officials responded by ordering air patrols in several southern regions.
- Sep 15 Houthi forces reported seizing the Greater and Lesser Hanish islands.
- Sep 15 Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met President Abdel Fattah al‑Sisi in Cairo to discuss Red Sea navigation and retaliation against the Houthis.
- Sep 16 Saudi civil defense issued emergency shelter warnings for Jeddah, Mecca and Taif.
- Sep 16 Saudi Arabia said it intercepted a drone aimed at Mecca and accused Iran-backed Houthi rebels of the plot, which the rebels denied.
- Sep 16 Saudi Arabia announced the cancellation of September crude cargoes to Europe.
- Sep 16 Saudi coalition announced a drone it said was Houthi‑linked was heading toward Mecca and triggered a brief security alert.
- Sep 16 Houthis seized coastal towns and islands at the mouth of the Bab el-Mandeb strait.
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