The United States completed a new round of strikes against Iran on Monday evening, as the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen threatened to impose a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia, potentially opening a new front in the Middle East conflict.
The latest round of tit-for-tat comes amid reports that regional mediators have presented Washington and Tehran with a 10-day ceasefire proposal, an offer that could put the memorandum of understanding reached last month back on track.
US Central Command said overnight that it had carried out another round of strikes on Iran at 9pm EST on Monday.
“US forces bombed Iranian military command centers, naval capabilities, missile launch sites, drones, and air defense systems to reduce Iran’s ability to continue attacking commercial ships flowing through the Strait of Hormuz,” Central Command said in a statement.
She added that the transit of commercial ships through the vital strategic waterway continues. The statement said that Central Command forces have facilitated the passage of about 900 commercial ships and 450 million barrels of crude oil through the strait since early May.
The Iranians still control the Strait of Hormuz, says Kpler’s Matt Smith
Meanwhile, Iran attacked an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz early Tuesday, forcing its crew to abandon ship as it seeks to tighten its control of the waterway, which typically handles about 20% of global oil traffic.
Kuwait said that Iran attacked a number of its electricity generation and water desalination plants on Monday, causing a fire in several facilities. The fires have since been extinguished, according to the Kuwaiti Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy, with repair work continuing. Kuwait relies heavily on drinking water desalination plants.
Yemen’s Houthis announced on Monday that a maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia takes effect immediately, a move that could significantly threaten oil supplies in the Middle East.
The Houthis repeatedly threatened to close the Bab al-Mandab Strait during the US-Iran war. The strait is a choke point for the movement of commercial ships linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and global markets.
In a statement published by the official news agency, the militants accused the Saudis of imposing an “aggressive siege” on them. Tensions escalated last week after they claimed that Riyadh bombed Sanaa International Airport.
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said it would respond to the Houthi naval blockade with force, calling such threats a “flagrant violation of international law.”
10-day ceasefire ‘will not be an easy task’
Oil prices rose briefly after news of the Houthi statement, but have since retreated as energy market participants closely watch the potential for a diplomatic breakthrough.
International benchmark Brent crude futures for September delivery were up 1.1% at $90.20 a barrel, erasing earlier losses. Meanwhile, US West Texas Intermediate crude futures for August delivery rose 1.1% at $84.13.
Strategists at ING said there is some hope for de-escalation between the US and Iran given reports that mediators are proposing a 10-day ceasefire.
A commuter walks past a mural along a street in Tehran on July 21, 2026.
“This will not be an easy task,” ING’s Warren Patterson and Ewa Manthey said in a research note published on Tuesday. They added: “There are still major divisions between the United States and Iran. President Trump said that the United States will retaliate after the killing of many American forces.”
“Every time Iran kills an American soldier, they will pay for that killing many times over!” President Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Monday. He added that this directive has been passed on to every commander in the army.
Saudi oil risks
The Houthi threat puts nearly 2.5 million barrels per day of Saudi oil at risk at a time when traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is at a standstill, said Jorge Leon, senior vice president and head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy.
“With the Gulf’s main sea port largely closed, the market is increasingly relying on Saudi Arabia’s east-west pipeline and Red Sea terminals to maintain export flows,” Lyon said Monday in a research note.
Hormuz slowdown could push oil prices into triple digits, but market remains complacent: Energy aspects
Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline Network, or PetroLine, is an approximately 750-mile system that transports crude oil across Saudi Arabia, linking Abqaiq on the eastern coast of the oil-rich kingdom’s eastern Gulf to the port of Yanbu on the Red Sea.
“Any disruption in Bab al-Mandab would not only threaten Saudi shipments, but would threaten one of the few remaining routes capable of compensating for the sharp decline in Hormuz traffic,” Leon said.
He added: “If a ceasefire is not reached and the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed while the Houthi threat to shipping in the Red Sea intensifies, the risk of a significant rebound in oil prices will be significant.”
Source: CNBC
