Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis exchanged fresh strikes across their border on Thursday and Yemenis took to boats in the Red Sea to escape fighting, as the spreading Middle East war created new threats to global oil supplies.

Houthi-controlled television reported Saudi airstrikes in Hajjah province close to the Saudi border near the Red Sea coast, and the vicinity of Taiz further inland to the south.

Saudi Arabia's civil defence said a Yemeni living in Saudi Arabia had been killed by debris from a drone intercepted over the western city of Taif, the first death Riyadh has announced in repeated Houthi attacks since fighting escalated last week. It has previously said more than 80 people were wounded.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards Navy said a Togo-flagged oil tanker caught fire after being hit while attempting what it called an 'illegal passage' through the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state media reported. The tanker came to a halt after the fire, the Guards Navy said.

The spread of the war to Yemen and Saudi Arabia has raised new concerns about oil supplies by jeopardising the main alternative Red Sea route for Gulf exports while traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains constrained.

US President Donald ⁠Trump has rebuffed pleas from the Saudis for military support to fight the Houthis, who agreed a ceasefire with the United States last year after Washington bombed the group for two months.

Trump said on Thursday he is approaching a critical juncture over whether to restart massive attacks on Iran.

"I have a big decision coming ⁠up. Do I want to go in and annihilate them or do I not? It's a big decision. Anything could happen with me," Trump said in an interview with Axios. Trump has in the past threatened major new attacks that have not materialised.

Global crude prices eased slightly on Thursday but remain well above US$100 a barrel after reaching their highest levels since May. The average US retail diesel price hit a record high on Thursday, just shy of US$6.40 a gallon.

The United States and Iran have held no negotiations to end the war since an interim agreement reached in June collapsed within weeks. But the war will come up for discussion at the United Nations General Assembly next week, and an Iranian delegation will be able to attend, according to the US State Department.

The fighting has driven Yemeni civilians to flee across the Bab el-Mandeb – Arabic for "Gate of Tears" – the narrow strait at the mouth of the Red Sea.

The International Organization for Migration says more than 100,000 Yemenis have been displaced by the latest fighting, mostly within Yemen.

The Houthis, who have seized Yemen's entire Red Sea coast since last week in a lightning advance, say the Saudi Air Force has conducted hundreds of airstrikes in recent days.

On Wednesday, the Houthis said they had shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet.

"We want the Saudis to cease their blockade and occupation of our country, and to stop their aggression against us. This is our demand!" Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said in a televised speech. (Reuters)



Edited by Cecil Wong