Houthi Group Advances Towards Key Saudi Oil Infrastructure

The Houthi rebel group is reportedly in a position to threaten Saudi Arabia's 745-mile-long pipeline and the world's largest oil processing plant. The Iran-backed group's advance along the Yemeni coast has allowed it to gain control over the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. The group is threatening the kingdom's largest pipeline and the oil processing plant in Abqaiq, which is significant for global energy markets. Security experts indicate that the Houthis may have been behind an attack on the East-West pipeline, which, along with Abqaiq and other oil facilities, is considered vulnerable to rebel actions. Kelly Campa, head of the Middle East team for the Institute for the Study of War, stated, "There is an inherent problem in trying to defend large, fixed infrastructure from the Houthi attacks." Campa also noted, "Attacks on the pipeline are very concerning… and it's clear that this is an Axis of Resistance effort to go after Saudi oil and impose more economic pains." Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has suggested that the expanded conflict is an internal issue for Yemen and Saudi Arabia that can be resolved quickly. The Houthis gained prominence after capturing Yemen's capital, Sanaa, in 2014 during a civil war against the Saudi-backed federal government. A ceasefire was enacted in 2022, but it collapsed in July after Saudi-linked forces bombed a runway near the capital to prevent an Iranian plane from landing, which was carrying Iranian advisers and military equipment for the Houthis' latest assault. The Houthis have since launched thousands of fighters on the port city of Mokha to strengthen their control of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Following Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia redirected a majority of its shipments through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, where $1 trillion worth of goods pass annually. The closure of the Strait would force oil and commercial tankers to divert through Egypt's Suez Canal, delaying their journeys significantly. The International Energy Agency reported that Saudi Arabia's crude exports through its main Red Sea port dropped to approximately 2.5 million barrels a day last month, down from 4.6 million barrels a day in July. The ISW warned that due to the Bab al-Mandeb Strait being narrower than the Strait of Hormuz, creating a safe military escort route similar to that on the coast of Oman is not feasible. The Houthis have also targeted Saudi infrastructure, indicating a broader threat to regional energy markets.