Iran-US war latest: Crucial Saudi oil pipeline ‘on fire’ as Houthis capture island near key shipping route

Satellite imagery showed smoke in the area of a crucial oil pipeline in Saudi Arabia, raising fears of another heavy attack by the Houthis on energy infrastructure. asserted

Images verified by Reuters showed smoke in the vicinity of the East-West oil pipeline, as the Houthis captured a strategic island of Perim in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. asserted

Earlier, two sources from the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised Yemeni government said its forces had withdrawn from Perim and that the Houthis had also taken the mainland Red Sea coastal town of Dhubab, which faces the island. asserted

The developments threaten to bring further chaos for energy exports. asserted

The price of oil touched $108 a barrel on Friday for the first time since May after the Houthis captured Yemen’s strategic port city of Mokha. uncertain

Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, has relied on the Red Sea route since the Iran conflict effectively closed Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil used to flow. asserted

Mokha is around 50 miles from Bab el-Mandeb, a geopolitical chokepoint connecting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and through which about 12 per cent of the world’s goods are typically shipped. asserted

Why fighting between the Houthis and Saudis is a disaster for Trump Washington has largely ignored the lingering disruption created by the Houthis around the Red Sea. asserted

But a wider conflict with Saudi Arabia could force them to intervene, writes James C. Reynolds. uncertain

Recap: UK economy grows despite Iran war toll Britain's economy grew by a much stronger than expected 0.4% in July, extending the strong performance seen in the first half of the year despite headwinds from the US-Iran war asserted

, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed on Friday. asserted

Compared with a year earlier, output in July was 1.6% higher, the fastest annual rate since February 2025 and above economists' 1.2% forecast. asserted

Growth in the three months to July held at the 0.4% recorded in the three months to June, compared with economists' median forecast for a slowdown to 0.3%. asserted

Britain, like other European economies, has taken less of an immediate hit to growth from the US-Iran war than economists had feared at the outset. But the conflict this week pushed oil prices above $105 a barrel with knock-on impacts on government borrowing costs, and the BoE expects inflation to rise to around 3.2% later this year. Smoke seen in satellite images of crucial Saudi oil pipeline Satellite imagery showed smoke on Thursday in the vicinity of Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline. There was no confirmation from Saudi Arabia of an incident in the area, and the Saudi government media office and state oil giant Aramco did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the smoke visible in the imagery verified by Reuters. The East-West Pipeline has become vital to Saudi Arabia since the outbreak of the war as state oil giant Aramco used it to ramp up crude flows from its eastern coast to the Red Sea to its west, diverting crude away from the Strait of Hormuz after Iran effectively blockaded it. Trump rejected Saudi calls for support against the Houthis - report Donald Trump rejected pleas from allied Saudi Arabia for support in tackling the Yemeni Houthi rebels, according to a report. Citing two US officials, Axios reported that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called president Trump twice on Thursday urging him to launch strikes against the Houthis. uncertain

But Trump reportedly rejected the request and has not intervened in the escalating conflict. uncertain

US officials said the administration does not plan to take direct military action at this time. asserted

The US is still supporting Saudi Arabia in Yemen, but has decided to stop short of direct military engagement. asserted

What would the Houthis gain from controlling Perim Island? asserted

Four Yemeni government sources told Reuters this morning that the Houthi rebels have reached the strategic Perim Island at the mouth of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. asserted

That comes after weeks of attacks on Saudi shipping through the Strait, limiting access into the Red Sea and out to the ocean. asserted

If the Houthis gain full control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz, it could give their backer Iran a critical advantage in the war with the US, reducing supplies through a second major transit corridor and sending oil prices surging. uncertain

Earlier, two sources from the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised Yemeni government said its forces had withdrawn from Perim and that the Houthis had also taken the mainland Red Sea coastal town of Dhubab, which faces the island. asserted

Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, has relied on the Red Sea route since the Iran conflict effectively closed Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil used to flow. asserted

Iran-backed Houthis reach Yemen's strategic Perim Island - report asserted

Iran-aligned Houthi militants reached Yemen's strategic Perim Island at the mouth of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait early on Friday after government forces withdrew, four Yemeni government sources told Reuters. asserted

The move marked the group's most significant advance yet towards control of the key shipping waterway. asserted

MI5 chief warns Britain faces greater danger now than on 9/11 Miliband’s ‘brave’ settlement trade ban has come too late, say West Bank Palestinians West Bank Palestinians are welcoming the UK government’s unprecedented ban on trade with the Israeli settlements - but say it is long overdue and doesn’t go far enough. asserted

On Tuesday, UK foreign secretary Ed Miliband confirmed a “new approach” in the UK’s relations with Israel, imposing a ban on goods coming out of Israeli settlements in the West Bank which Britain regards as illegal. asserted

Palestinians in the West Bank praised the “brave” government for a step in the right direction, as residents face growing violence and repression from Israeli settlers and authorities. asserted

“It's too late, but to come late is better than never,” says Basel Adra, filmmaker and director of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land, which documents life facing settler attacks and home demolitions in the beleaguered area of Masafer Yatta in the southern West Bank. asserted

Internal White House warnings caution Trump that Iran war could last years: report Top White House advisers, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have privately warned President Donald Trump that the conflict with Iran could extend through the remainder of his presidency, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing U.S. officials. uncertain

The private warnings were delivered during internal strategy discussions held in the Oval Office and the Situation Room. asserted

During these confidential meetings, senior officials informed the president that Tehran could continue to resist U.S. pressure, potentially prolonging the conflict beyond Inauguration Day in January 2029. uncertain

According to details reported by the Journal, the assessment from key aides highlights concerns within the administration that Iranian resistance may not be easily broken, suggesting military engagement could become a defining foreign policy issue for Trump's entire term in office. uncertain

These private warnings stand in sharp contrast to Trump's own public remarks regarding the war. asserted

Speaking on Wednesday, the president offered a much shorter timeline for the conflict, telling reporters and the public he expected the fighting to end far sooner than his top advisers projected in private. asserted