US Iran strikes pause as Red Sea attacks widen conflict
Washington halted strikes after 13 nights, while Houthi attacks on Saudi oil sites raised new fears for Red Sea shipping.
By Sal Moretti · Money Reporter
4 min read
The US Iran strikes pause held over the weekend after 13 straight nights of American attacks, even as the wider conflict spread toward the Red Sea and the Caspian Sea, according to U.S. officials, Reuters and regional authorities.
The U.S. military said Saturday that its naval blockade of Iran “remains in full effect,” but it did not give a reason for stopping the recent run of strikes. Reuters reported that there were also no weekend reports of Iranian attacks on neighboring countries like the daily responses that had followed the U.S. campaign.
Why did the US pause strikes on Iran?
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that the halt was tied to talks between Washington and Tehran. Waltz said discussions were happening at the highest levels of both governments, while also describing “internal fighting” on the Iranian side.
A senior Iranian source told Reuters on Sunday that Tehran would stop its own attacks as long as the United States kept its pause. The source said Iran’s stance was “attack for attack” and added that Tehran remained doubtful about Washington’s intentions, viewing the pause as tactical rather than genuine.
The New York Times reported Saturday, citing two people briefed on the discussions, that President Donald Trump had decided for now against expanding attacks on Iran. According to the newspaper, Trump and his advisers were concerned about widening the war, draining defense stockpiles, straining Gulf allies and affecting energy supplies and the global economy.
CNN reported that Vice President JD Vance and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, raised worries about U.S. munitions levels during a Friday White House meeting with Trump. A Defense Department source told CNN that operations were “on a hold.”
What happened in the Red Sea?
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said they targeted Saudi Aramco facilities in Jizan and Yanbu on Saturday. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the strikes hit sites belonging to the Saudi state oil company.
Reuters said it verified social media video showing a large plume of smoke rising from the direction of the Aramco refinery in Jizan, near the Yemeni border. The refinery can process up to 400,000 barrels of crude oil per day, according to Reuters.
Two Asia-based trading sources told Reuters they had been informed of possible damage to fuel and oil storage sites at Jizan. Aramco did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
In Yanbu, two missiles aimed at oil installations were intercepted, Reuters reported. Yanbu is Saudi Arabia’s main Red Sea oil port and has become an important route for Saudi oil avoiding the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has blockaded.
The Red Sea attacks raise the risk that the conflict could pressure a second major shipping route after disruption around Hormuz. The Houthis have declared a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia in the past week, and Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi has said Saudi oil facilities could be targets.
Is Yemen’s civil war at risk of restarting?
Yemeni officials said the air force of the Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government struck Houthi sites in Marib and al-Jawf provinces. The officials also said both sides were moving forces along the front lines.
Saudi Arabia has led an Arab coalition against the Houthis since the group captured Yemen’s capital, Sanaa. Yemen’s civil war, which Reuters said killed hundreds of thousands through fighting and famine, had been paused by a ceasefire since 2022, but that truce broke down this month as the Houthis joined the wider war involving their Iranian allies.
The conflict also reached the Caspian Sea diplomatically. Iran’s Foreign Ministry accused Ukraine of attacking an Iranian commercial vessel, saying one sailor was killed and another was injured. Iran summoned Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires in Tehran over what state news agency IRNA described as a “hostile and criminal” attack.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv had noted that Russia was passing satellite observations in the Middle East to Iran to help direct strikes in the region, according to Reuters.
This story draws on original reporting from NBC News.