New Houthi attack in Saudi Arabia, Iran-Gulf talks postponed.

Gulf states have postponed a meeting with Iran scheduled for Monday, as Yemen's Houthis launched a new attack against Saudi Arabia. The group, aligned with Tehran, claimed to have fired dozens of missiles and drones at the Khamis Mushait military airbase in the south of the country, targeting hangars, radar systems, runways, and ammunition depots. The attack was described as retaliation for recent Saudi airstrikes.

The postponement of the meeting, which was supposed to discuss the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, was announced by Oman's Foreign Minister. Iran stated that the decision was made at Saudi Arabia's request. Meanwhile, Tehran published a list of 77 ships that allegedly violated its protocols in the Strait, threatening sanctions.

The conflict in Yemen began in 2014 when the Houthis, a Shiite rebel group, captured the capital Sana'a. Saudi Arabia led a military coalition in support of the internationally recognized Yemeni government. After years of war, a ceasefire had brought relative calm in recent years, but fighting resumed violently in early September 2026.

The crisis extended to the global energy theater when, last week, the Houthis seized an island at the mouth of the Red Sea and an attack (which Riyadh blames on Iran-backed militias in Iraq) damaged Saudi Arabia's main east-west oil pipeline. This pipeline is a crucial route to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important maritime passage for oil, which has been largely closed since February after attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran. The closure of the strait and the damage to the pipeline risk cutting up to 4% of the global oil supply, driving up prices.