Trump Threatens Military Action Against Iran Over Renewed Houthi Tanker Attacks

President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened direct military retaliation against Iran after Yemen's Houthi movement resumed attacks on commercial shipping, targeting two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea and ending a months-long lull in its maritime campaign.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the United States would hold Tehran responsible for future Houthi attacks, describing the group as an Iranian proxy.

"A year ago the United States of America attacked, very powerfully, the Houthis, for their interference with commerce and trade, by shooting at ships," Trump wrote. "Since that time, and during our conflict with Iran, they have acted very responsibly. Unfortunately, now they are starting up again, shooting at two Saudi Arabian ships last night."

Trump warned that any further attacks would bring "major military punishment" against both Iran and the Houthis.

His statement followed Wednesday's attacks on the Saudi-flagged tankers Encelia and Layla. The Houthis said the vessels were targeted with ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones for allegedly violating the group's newly declared maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia.

UK Maritime Trade Operations separately reported that a tanker about 70 nautical miles southwest of Al Shuqaiq, Saudi Arabia, had been struck by an unknown projectile, sparking a fire onboard. No casualties were reported.

The attacks mark a significant expansion of both the U.S.-Iran conflict and the Houthis' previously dormant campaign against merchant shipping.

The strikes were the Houthis' first acknowledged attacks on merchant shipping since a ceasefire between the United States and the group was brokered by Oman in May 2025.

At the time, Trump announced that Washington would halt its bombing campaign after saying the Houthis had agreed to stop attacking U.S. vessels.

"They said, 'Please don't bomb us anymore and we're not going to attack your ships,'" Trump said when announcing the agreement.

Operation Rough Rider, launched in March 2025, struck more than 1,000 Houthi targets across Yemen as Washington sought to degrade the group's ability to threaten shipping and restore freedom of navigation through the Red Sea. The offensive was suspended following the Oman-brokered agreement.

The Iranian-backed Houthis began their maritime campaign on November 19, 2023, with the seizure of the Galaxy Leader in the Red Sea, saying their actions were intended to support Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Since then, the group has been linked to 127 maritime incidents involving merchant shipping, according to the latest Joint Maritime Information Center statistics. The total includes missile and drone strikes, attempted attacks and vessel seizures.

The campaign reshaped global trade as many of the world's largest container lines diverted ships away from the Suez Canal and around the Cape of Good Hope, adding thousands of miles and significant costs to voyages between Asia and Europe.

The attacks also prompted an unprecedented multinational naval presence in the region. The U.S.-led Operation Prosperity Guardian and the European Union's Operation ASPIDES deployed warships to protect commercial shipping, while U.S. and allied forces intercepted Houthi missiles and drones.

Those defensive missions, combined with Operation Rough Rider and the subsequent decline in attacks, helped support a gradual recovery in commercial traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb and Suez Canal, particularly among tanker operators. Transit volumes, however, remain below pre-2023 levels.

The renewed Houthi attacks come as the latest JMIC advisory warns that the security situation in the Strait of Hormuz remains highly volatile.

JMIC has recorded 72 confirmed maritime security incidents since March 1, including four since its previous report: three tanker attacks near the Strait of Hormuz and one U.S. blockade-enforcement boarding.

The center continues to assess the threat level in the Strait of Hormuz as severe, warning that deliberate hostile action remains highly likely following 14 Iranian attacks since June 25.

Commercial traffic through the strategic chokepoint remains well below normal levels as shipowners delay voyages following repeated attacks. JMIC said the strait historically averages approximately 138 vessel transits per day, while only nine U.S.-assisted commercial transits were recorded over July 19 and 20.

"Recent threats by Yemen's Houthis to impose a maritime blockade on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia pose a direct threat to regional stability and constitute a dangerous escalation," said Kaja Kallas, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security. "The Houthis must cease all actions that endanger international shipping and the lives of seafarers."

In the Bab el-Mandeb, commercial traffic has so far continued largely unchanged despite the Houthis' declaration of a maritime blockade targeting Saudi-linked shipping. JMIC recorded 85 vessel transits over the previous 48 hours, although volumes remain below pre-2023 levels.

The center said it had not yet observed operational enforcement of the Houthi blockade declaration.

The attacks on Encelia and Layla now threaten to interrupt the gradual Red Sea recovery and again push shipowners toward the longer route around the Cape of Good Hope. They also raise the prospect of the Red Sea reemerging as a major flashpoint for global trade just as security conditions in the Strait of Hormuz continue to deteriorate.