Saudi Arabia strikes Houthis after attacks on energy sites, sending Brent crude past $100

Saudi Arabia launched airstrikes against Houthi-controlled positions in Yemen’s Hodeidah governorate on July 24, 2026, ending years of relative calm and sending shockwaves through global energy markets. Brent crude surged past $100 per barrel almost immediately. The strikes came in direct retaliation for Houthi attacks on two Saudi oil tankers, the Encelia and the Layla, in the Red Sea just days earlier on July 22-23. Saudi officials classified their retaliatory strikes as hitting “legitimate military installations” involved in assaults on shipping routes, including telecom facilities. What happened and why it matters The Houthis, the Iran-backed militant group that has controlled large swaths of Yemen since 2014, claimed responsibility for targeting both Saudi tankers. One civilian woman was reportedly injured during the strikes on Kamaran Island. This effectively shattered an informal truce that had held since March 2022. The Houthis have also announced a maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia. Saudi oil export capacity sits at roughly 5 million barrels per day, and any meaningful disruption to that flow ripples across every energy-dependent economy on the planet. Earlier strikes in Ap...