G7 nations have urged Yemen's Houthis to stop strikes on Saudi Arabia, in a show of solidarity with Riyadh as the Tehran-backed group continued to threaten Saudi territory and its oil exports.
"We call on the Houthis to immediately cease all military actions and all threats and attacks against civilian shipping, and to return to the political process in good faith," the leaders of the G7 nations — Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US —said in a statement.
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham agreed to provide military support to Saudi Arabia on Monday, adding that the UK would provide "defensive" air-to-air refuelling for Saudi jets.
France also pledged its support, saying it was ready to work on "securing" Saudi energy infrastructure targeted by Houthis, while adopting a "strictly defensive approach," a diplomatic source told AFP on Monday.
"This in no way involves taking part in the conflict with the Houthis," the source added.
The G7 also called on Iran "to end its arming of and support for the Houthis", alleging that Tehran is in violation of previous UN Security Council resolutions.
Exchange of fire continues
The war in Yemen, which began in 2014 with the Houthi capture of the capital Sana'a, had been largely frozen since 2022.
It resumed in July, when the Houthis and Saudi Arabia — which has backed the internationally recognised government since 2015 — began exchanging fire again.
The Houthi offensive on Yemen's Red Sea coast resulted in their capture of the Bab el-Mandeb strait, a key waterway for the world's shipping together with the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf.
The Houthis have carried out attacks against facilities belonging to Saudi oil giant Aramco in the Red Sea port city of Yanbu.
The East-West Pipeline, a crucial crude oil export route, has also been shut down following drone attacks launched from Iraq, according to Riyadh.
Saudi strikes on Yemen's strategic Red Sea port of Mokha killed at least six people and wounded eight others, the Houthi-affiliated news agency SABA reported on Tuesday.
The strikes followed a Houthi attack on Riyadh on Saturday, which marked the first attack on the Saudi capital in years and a major escalation by the Iran-aligned fighters.
The head of Yemen's internationally-recognised government Rashad al-Alimi held a call with US President Donald Trump to request American support against the Houthis, a source in Alimi's office said on Monday.
Trump did not promise military support, the source said, adding that the call, which took place on Sunday, was intended as a show of solidarity with Yemen's embattled government.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also repeatedly urged Trump to strike the Houthis, US media reported.
Trump told Fox News on Sunday that the Houthis had agreed not to hit US targets.
Houthi leader calls out Saudi allies
The Houthi movement, formally known as Ansar Allah, is named after its late spiritual leader Badreddin al-Houthi and his son Hussein, who was killed by Yemeni government forces in 2004.
Houthi's other son Abdulmalik assumed the reins of power, delivering fiery speeches and transforming his group from an isolated faction in the northwest into the ruling power in the capital and a regional player.
In one such speech on Monday, Abdulmalik said Saudi Arabia had launched 760 airstrikes as of a day earlier, questioning, "if Pakistan and Turkey were subjected to this number of strikes, wouldn't it cause a major crisis?"
He said Saudi Arabia is seeking to "push the Turks and Pakistanis forward and import Takfiris (the charge of apostacy) from Syria, at a time when Syria is facing total destruction."
He advised the two countries "not to become entangled for political and financial gain from the Saudi enemy".
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey last month signed the so-called Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, committing the three countries to mutual defence if any of them is attacked.
