Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis may have struck Saudi Arabia's critical East-West oil pipeline, the roughly 746-mile artery running from Abqaiq in the kingdom's Eastern Province to Yanbu on the Red Sea. The alleged attack has not been independently confirmed.

What the Satellites Show

According to satellite images from NASA's Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) on Thursday, the agency detected eight thermal anomalies in the area, including several classified with high detection confidence. The data does not establish what caused the anomalies or whether the pipeline itself was hit.

Unverified satellite imagery, as well as ground images shared on the social media platform X, purport to show fire incidents that took place in the region.

The East-West pipeline was constructed in the 1980s as an alternative to the Strait of Hormuz after tensions between Iran and Iraq threatened the movement of oil through the waterway. The pipeline has a capacity of 7 million barrels per day, according to a report by S&P Global in March 2026.

Houthis Take Control of Mocha

The Houthis captured the port city of Mocha, which could expand the group's control over the critical Red Sea coast and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a critical chokepoint connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and a key route for Saudi oil shipments traveling toward global markets. This comes as tensions between the U.S. and Iran have escalated, with President Donald Trump saying that he intends to rename the Strait of Hormuz the "Trump Strait."

Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it struck two U.S. vessels, as well as multiple oil tankers, following U.S. strikes on Iranian oil vessels. However, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) denied the claims. Trump, on the other hand, said that the U.S. had hit nine Iranian oil vessels during a press briefing, but did not provide additional details.

Notably, the President had also said that the war with Iran would immediately end following the midterm elections set to take place in November, but economist Peter Schiff criticized the comments, calling them Trump's latest lie.