American military planners have prepared preliminary Houthi targets in Yemen, should senior Biden administration officials order retaliatory strikes, two U.S. officials said.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/25/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-yemen-houthis-gaza.html

Another Houthi leader, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, warned of “painful options” available to the Houthis to “employ in response to any act of aggression against their homeland.”

Source: https://www.breitbart.com/middle-east/2023/12/19/houthis-threaten-u-s-red-sea-coalition-vow-no-end-to-attacks-unless-israel-lets-hamas-thrive/

A Saudi-led military coalition intervened in Yemen’s conflict in 2015, months after the Iran-backed Houthi militias seized the capital of Sanaa in 2014, forcing the internationally recognized government into exile in Saudi Arabia.

Source: https://wtop.com/world/2023/03/syria-hopes-iran-saudi-agreement-will-ease-regional-tension/

As recently as 2019, Houthi rebels attacked an oil refinery complex in Saudi Arabia, knocking off 4 m b/d of capacity for several weeks.

Source: https://seekingalpha.com/article/4611129-goehring-and-rozencwajg-q1-2023-natural-resource-market-commentary?source=feed_all_articles

British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said on Sunday he had told Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian in a call that Iran should help stop the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.

Source: https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/conflict/us-forces-repel-houthi-attack-on-maersk-ship-in-red-sea-c-13074799

CAIRO—Saudi officials were in Yemen’s capital on Sunday for talks with the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, as part of international efforts to find a settlement to Yemen’s nine-year conflict, officials said.

Source: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2023/04/10/china-military-displays-force-toward-taiwan-after-tsai-trip/

FILE PHOTO: Iran was “deeply involved” in planning operations against commercial vessels in the Red Sea and its intelligence was critical to enable Yemen’s Houthi movement to target ships, the White House says on Friday, December 22, 2023.

Source: https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1878797/iran-deeply-involved-in-red-sea-attacks-on-commercial-vessels-us

Hadi’s resignation coincided with the start of Yemen’s civil war in 2014, when Houthi insurgents took control of Yemen’s capital and largest city, Sana’a, demanding a new government.

Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-global/us-to-relax-weapons-ban-saudi-arabia-9084618/

Hours later, the same ship was swarmed by Houthi boats, but the ship.

Source: https://gcaptain.com/maersk-halts-red-sea-transits-again-after-houthi-missile-and-boat-swarm-attack/

Houthi fighters descended on the ship from helicopters and took all 25 crew members hostage.

Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-global/why-houthis-seized-india-bound-ship-gaza-war-9035068/

Houthi forces take part in funeral ceremony for Yahya Al-Shami, assistant supreme commander of the Houthi forces, a day after his death due to Covid-19 pandemic, in Yemen's capital Sanaa on April 27, 2021.

Source: https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2023/08/us-urges-houthis-negotiate-yemens-government

Houthi forces take part in funeral ceremony for Yahya Al-Shami, assistant supreme commander of the Houthi forces, a day after his death due to Covid-19 pandemic, in Yemen's capital Sanaa on April 27, 2021.

Source: https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2023/08/us-urges-houthis-negotiate-yemens-government

Houthi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed Sunday's attacks, saying the first vessel was hit by a missile and the second by a drone while in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which links the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.

Source: https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20231204-us-destroyer-shoots-down-drones-after-houthi-attack-on-ships-in-red-sea

Houthi officials will travel to Riyadh with the Omani mediators, who landed in Sanaa on Thursday, the sources said.

Source: https://gazette.com/news/us-world/houthi-envoys-heading-to-riyadh-for-ceasefire-talks-with-saudis---sources/article_51a72140-fe35-5927-bc76-0f61a0777522.html

Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree said the was targeted with a missile because it “refused to respond to the calls of the Yemeni naval services.”

Source: https://www.breitbart.com/middle-east/2023/12/15/maersk-suspends-red-sea-shipping-after-iran-backed-houthi-attacks/

Houthi strikes on commercial vessels in the Red Sea are part of the Yemen-based group’s attacks on Israel and countries trading with it.

Source: https://globalnews.ca/news/10181633/canada-gas-prices-2023-holidays/

However, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have been launching a series of attacks on vessels in the Red Sea, as well as launching drones and missiles targeting Israel as it wages war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Source: https://www.samfordcrimson.com/pentagon-says-us-warship-commercial-vessels-under-attack-in-red-sea-2023-12-03.html

In commodities, global oil benchmark Brent hovered about $US80 ($A119) a barrel amid jitters over global trade disruptions and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East following attacks on ships in the Red Sea by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi forces.

Source: https://www.perthnow.com.au/business/markets/asian-stocks-fall-as-wall-street-rally-stalls-c-12978240

Iran has supported Shia Houthi rebels who forced out the Saudi-backed government in 2014, while Saudi Arabia has led a devastating air campaign against the Houthis since the following year.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-64906996?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

Israel’s military said Yemen-based Houthi rebels had seized a cargo ship in the southern Red Sea sailing from Turkey to India but said no Israelis were aboard and that it wasn’t an Israeli ship.

Source: https://calgary.citynews.ca/2023/11/19/un-team-says-32-babies-are-among-scores-of-critically-ill-patients-stranded-in-gazas-main-hospital/