U.S. President Donald Trump says Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have contacted Washington and indicated they do not want a direct confrontation with the United States. Speaking in Dublin, Trump said the group appears interested in avoiding a wider conflict with American forces.
Trump also said Iran was probably responsible for a drone attack that forced Saudi Arabia to shut its East-West oil pipeline. Iraq, however, has said the attack originated from its territory, leaving questions over who was behind the strike.
The pipeline is a key route for Saudi oil exports, allowing crude to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. Its shutdown has added further pressure to already disrupted regional energy supplies.
Meanwhile, Houthi forces are advancing along Yemen’s Red Sea coast, raising concerns over the strategic Bab el-Mandeb shipping route.
With Hormuz traffic already severely disrupted, any further attacks around Bab el-Mandeb could threaten commercial shipping and push energy prices higher. The latest developments show that despite claims of avoiding direct confrontation, tensions across the region remain extremely high.
