Iran says Hormuz route agreed with Oman NATO pledges urgent air defences after Kyiv strike kills 17 China answers US tech curbs with sanctions and drone export controls WFP forecasts 50 million more people in acute hunger as El Niño builds Relatives search for missing as Ceuta death toll nears 100 Houthis claim strikes on two Saudi tankers in one day Ebola outbreak outpaces response in Congo, WHO says Netanyahu says Israel did not agree to US-backed Gaza plan US refunds about $100bn of Trump tariffs after Supreme Court ruling Germany treats Leipzig drone bomb as professional hybrid threat Trump says he prefers a deal as US and Iran redraft Hormuz terms Meta reports AI model hacked outside firm during test Record low Rhine halts freight as heat strains Europe's power plants Reports detail US munitions depletion as Iran campaign pauses Israel strikes southern Lebanon, killing one Ukrainian strike on Kursk industrial site kills four UN reports rising Afghan child deaths as food aid is cut Pentagon drafts nuclear strategy leaning on tactical weapons Reports put hundreds of Yemeni civilian casualties from US strikes US and Japan keep buying yen as currency holds near 157 Car bomb critically injures Russian drone maker's chief Google AI leadership reshuffled as chief scientist and three colleagues leave Ukraine says Russia is fielding a North Korean missile unit Taiwan starts ten-day drills and throttles mobile internet Putin reshuffles Defence Ministry command to push drone warfare Nigeria frees 308 kidnapping victims US hawks push multibillion-dollar Taiwan arms deal before Xi summit Cyberattacks hit water systems in 12 US states Iraq struggles to pay salaries as Hormuz crisis cuts oil exports Japan tests longer-range anti-ship missile as Kim Yo Jong warns of response Aerial war expands as the ground front stays frozen Hedge funds nurse July losses as 'Sell America' debate returns Turkey's ruling party submits PKK dissolution bill to parliament Trump AI safety guidelines reported to exempt Chinese models Chinese bomber shown with nuclear-capable missile as warships sail near Japan Lula condemns US revocation of Brazilian ambassador's visa Russia accuses Ukraine of endangering Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant US private payrolls add 44,000 as Fed's Cook signals possible rate rise CIA sets up secret task force targeting Cuba Cloudbursts destroy homes and crops in Kashmir's Pir Panjal Meta releases AI coding agent Saudi-led group completes $55bn Electronic Arts takeover US deportation orders hit record as judicial removals triple Pakistan bars international media from reporting in most of the country Iran buries strike victims and prepares court cases against US and Israel Cuba hit by seventh nationwide blackout of the year El-Sayed wins Michigan Democratic Senate primary on strong night for the left Xi faces gaps at top of PLA after purge of generals FDA approves Moderna's mRNA flu vaccine Israeli forces raid Qalandiya refugee camp in occupied West Bank Iran says Hormuz route agreed with Oman NATO pledges urgent air defences after Kyiv strike kills 17 China answers US tech curbs with sanctions and drone export controls WFP forecasts 50 million more people in acute hunger as El Niño builds Relatives search for missing as Ceuta death toll nears 100 Houthis claim strikes on two Saudi tankers in one day Ebola outbreak outpaces response in Congo, WHO says Netanyahu says Israel did not agree to US-backed Gaza plan US refunds about $100bn of Trump tariffs after Supreme Court ruling Germany treats Leipzig drone bomb as professional hybrid threat Trump says he prefers a deal as US and Iran redraft Hormuz terms Meta reports AI model hacked outside firm during test Record low Rhine halts freight as heat strains Europe's power plants Reports detail US munitions depletion as Iran campaign pauses Israel strikes southern Lebanon, killing one Ukrainian strike on Kursk industrial site kills four UN reports rising Afghan child deaths as food aid is cut Pentagon drafts nuclear strategy leaning on tactical weapons Reports put hundreds of Yemeni civilian casualties from US strikes US and Japan keep buying yen as currency holds near 157 Car bomb critically injures Russian drone maker's chief Google AI leadership reshuffled as chief scientist and three colleagues leave Ukraine says Russia is fielding a North Korean missile unit Taiwan starts ten-day drills and throttles mobile internet Putin reshuffles Defence Ministry command to push drone warfare Nigeria frees 308 kidnapping victims US hawks push multibillion-dollar Taiwan arms deal before Xi summit Cyberattacks hit water systems in 12 US states Iraq struggles to pay salaries as Hormuz crisis cuts oil exports Japan tests longer-range anti-ship missile as Kim Yo Jong warns of response Aerial war expands as the ground front stays frozen Hedge funds nurse July losses as 'Sell America' debate returns Turkey's ruling party submits PKK dissolution bill to parliament Trump AI safety guidelines reported to exempt Chinese models Chinese bomber shown with nuclear-capable missile as warships sail near Japan Lula condemns US revocation of Brazilian ambassador's visa Russia accuses Ukraine of endangering Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant US private payrolls add 44,000 as Fed's Cook signals possible rate rise CIA sets up secret task force targeting Cuba Cloudbursts destroy homes and crops in Kashmir's Pir Panjal Meta releases AI coding agent Saudi-led group completes $55bn Electronic Arts takeover US deportation orders hit record as judicial removals triple Pakistan bars international media from reporting in most of the country Iran buries strike victims and prepares court cases against US and Israel Cuba hit by seventh nationwide blackout of the year El-Sayed wins Michigan Democratic Senate primary on strong night for the left Xi faces gaps at top of PLA after purge of generals FDA approves Moderna's mRNA flu vaccine Israeli forces raid Qalandiya refugee camp in occupied West Bank

Symbolic image: Houthis claim strikes on two Saudi tankers in one day

Symbolic image

Houthis claim strikes on two Saudi tankers in one day

8 sources

Yemen's Houthis said on Wednesday they hit two Saudi oil tankers, the Wafa off Yanbu and the Daisy in the Gulf of Aden. Oil prices rebounded, and Saudi Arabia has not commented on the claims.

What happened

Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree said ballistic missiles hit the Wafa; another struck the Daisy south of the Bab al-Mandeb strait.
UKMTO logged an incident 95 nautical miles south-east of Aden: the master reported a loud explosion, the crew is safe.
Saree counted eight Saudi tankers targeted and 29 blocked or turned back since the blockade began on 22 July.
Saudi Arabia struck Houthi military sites at Hodeidah port and Kamaran island on Friday, 31 July; the Houthis then claimed a missile strike on Jizan.
Brent traded at $80.54, up 1.49 per cent, after crude had fallen more than 5 per cent on Tuesday.

The view from outside

The National (UAE) reports, citing tracking firm Windward, that two Pakistan-flagged tankers loaded at Yanbu transited Bab al-Mandeb safely despite the threats. Daily Sabah cites Kpler data showing Saudi seaborne crude exports through the strait rose eightfold between March and mid-July compared with 2025.

What could happen next

Neither the Houthis nor Riyadh has reported damage or casualties from Wednesday's strikes; Saree gave no details.
Whether Yanbu stays usable as Saudi Arabia's main export outlet while Hormuz remains closed is unresolved.
OPEC+ agreed on Sunday to raise output again in September and said it would keep monitoring developments.

How the camps see it

Houthis: Say the strikes answer Riyadh's years-long blockade of Yemen and will be intensified in the northern Red Sea to close all access points to Saudi oil.
Saudi Arabia: Has issued no statement on the claimed hits and has answered the campaign militarily, bombing Houthi installations in Hodeidah and on Kamaran.

Also involved

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