Brent oil climbs near $108 as Houthi-Saudi fighting escalates
Brent oil prices surged after fighting between Yemen-based Houthi militants and Saudi-backed forces intensified, stoking fears of deeper supply disruptions as hostilities escalated across the Middle East. The global benchmark traded near $108 a barrel after surging more than six per cent in the previous session, with futures on track for the biggest weekly gain since July. West Texas Intermediate was around $103. Iran-backed Houthis advanced toward coastal areas bordering the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, gaining ground in their attempt to seize Mokha near the southern end of the Red Sea.
Houthis advance along Yemeni coast as tensions with Saudi escalate
Iran-backed rebel group Houthis gained control over Yemen's port city of Mocha on Thursday and advanced toward the Red Sea coast to strategic islands, hours after President Donald Trump said he expected the Iran war to end after the US midterm elections. Citing military sources in the Yemeni government, Reuters reported that the rebel group had gained further leverage over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the southern outlet of the Red Sea and one of the world's most important shipping routes, and had reached the islands of Hanish.
Iran's Ghalibaf backs Houthis' capture of Mocha
Iran's Parliamentary Speaker and top negotiator with the US, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, on Friday expressed support for the "Yemeni people" following the capture of the strategic Red Sea city of Mocha by Houthis, invoking past statements from slain Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Reacting to the development, Ghalibaf, in a post on X, wrote, "The brave Yemeni people will certainly triumph, by the permission of God Almighty. " He made the post while highlighting an earlier statement by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which read, "We hope, God willing, that the jihad of the people of #Yemen and their resistance and steps will continue until victory, by the permission of God Almighty. "
