By Al Jazeera Staff

The following report was first published on July 24, 2026.

Yemen has been in a fragile peace since 2022, but the Houthi-controlled capital and the recognized government remain at an impasse.

The UN envoy for Yemen warned that renewed Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping could pull the country back into a full-scale war.

Hans Grundberg said in a statement on Thursday that he was “alarmed” by the resumption of attacks by the Houthis, known as Ansar Allah, on commercial vessels, and called for talks to resolve the country’s crisis.

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“Escalatory actions risk putting Yemen on a path toward further confrontation, drawing the country deeper into an already volatile regional environment, and deepening the suffering of the Yemeni people,” Grundberg said.

“It is still possible to change course and move towards negotiations that address Yemen’s political, economic and security challenges and put the interests of its people at the centre. A negotiated political settlement in Yemen would also contribute to greater stability in the region.”

The war in Yemen has been mostly quiet since 2022, but a political stalemate continues between the Houthis, who hold Sanaa, and the internationally recognized government.

On Wednesday, the Houthis claimed they hit two Saudi oil tankers, named Encelia and Layla, using missiles and drones. This was their first assault after they declared a blockade on Saudi-linked ships on July 20.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the vessels were hit “for their violation of the blockade decision issued by the armed forces”.

The Houthis had imposed the blockade in retaliation for the July 13 bombing of Sanaa airport’s runway, which Yemen’s internationally recognised government said it carried out to stop an Iranian aircraft landing. The Houthis blamed Saudi Arabia, the government’s main backer.

The Houthis, who are allied with Iran, also fired missiles into Saudi Arabia, targeting an airport.

The maritime campaign has caused at least five tankers to change course to avoid the Bab al-Mandeb Strait off Yemen’s coast. The disruption has helped push the price of Brent crude oil above $100 a barrel.

Yemen’s civil war has ground on for nearly 12 years since the Houthis seized Sanaa in 2014, driving the internationally recognised government to Aden and drawing in a Saudi-led coalition.

The US-Israel war on Iran has threatened to reactivate ground fighting between the two sides, plunging the country into deeper strife.

The UN estimates that 22 million Yemenis need aid this year, with 18.3 million suffering acute food insecurity – not having enough to eat.

The UN warning on Thursday came as the United States carried out its 12th consecutive night of strikes on Iran in a war that has already disrupted shipping through another global chokepoint, the Strait of Hormuz.

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Washington would hold Iran responsible for further Houthi attacks on shipping, calling the group a proxy of Tehran and threatening retaliation against both.

“Major military punishment will be inflicted upon Iran and, of course, the Houthis,” he wrote on Truth Social.

The Houthi attacks come amid heightened regional tensions, with the group claiming retaliation for airstrikes on Sanaa airport. The internationally recognized government blames Saudi Arabia for the airport bombing, while the Houthis target Saudi vessels. This escalation threatens to unravel the two-year pause in Yemen's war and further destabilize Red Sea shipping lanes. UN efforts to broker a political settlement have stalled, and Grundberg's call for talks reflects the urgent need to de-escalate.