Yemen rebels report fresh Saudi strikes as conflict deepens

Yemen's Houthi rebels reported dozens of Saudi airstrikes on Wednesday as daily attacks continued in a conflict that has reignited during the Middle East war, with hundreds of people killed in fighting near the Red Sea.

More than 40 attacks targeted several regions, including the flashpoint areas of Taiz and Hodeida, the scene of fierce clashes between the Houthis and Saudi-backed government, the rebels said.

The latest salvos in Yemen's previously dormant conflict come a day after the Houthis set oil sites ablaze and wounded 73 in their heaviest missile and drone attacks against Saudi Arabia in years.

The Yemen fighting is taking place against the backdrop of the Middle East war, which erupted in late February with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran.

On Wednesday, Iran said it attacked 20 American vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and targeted a U.S. military base in Jordan in retaliation for U.S. strikes on Iranian oil tankers.

The Middle East war has sucked in Yemen, the energy-rich Gulf, and others across the region while roiling the world economy, as oil prices returned to $100 a barrel on Wednesday.

More than 500 people have died since the Houthis launched a major offensive last week to seize territory around the Bab al-Mandab strait, gateway to the Red Sea shipping route.

The rebels, who have been attacking Saudi oil tankers, are trying to tighten their squeeze on the shipments, analysts say -- a lifeline for exports after Iran's blockade of Hormuz.

AFP