Trump Signals Iran Deal Opening as Gulf Talks Slip and Houthis Hit Saudi Base

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that Iran was eager to reach an agreement with Washington, hinting at a possible diplomatic opening even as fighting spread across the Middle East and put global oil supplies at risk.

Writing on Truth Social, Trump said the "failing Nation of Iran wants to make a deal, quickly and badly", adding that he would decide whether the United States would engage and that Washington was open to the idea.

His remarks followed two developments that underscored how quickly the conflict is widening. Gulf Arab states postponed a planned meeting with Iran, and Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said they had launched a fresh attack on Saudi Arabia.

The Houthis claimed they fired dozens of missiles and drones at a military airbase in Khamis Mushait in southern Saudi Arabia, targeting aircraft hangars, radar systems, runways and ammunition depots. The group described the assault as retaliation for Saudi airstrikes in Yemen. Emergency alerts were issued in Khamis Mushait and three other southern Saudi cities that have previously come under Houthi fire.

Houthi gains and a crippled pipeline

The Houthis have advanced rapidly in Yemen in recent days, seizing territory that includes Perim Island at the mouth of the Red Sea on Friday. A separate attack the same day, which Riyadh blamed on Iran-backed fighters in Iraq, disabled Saudi Arabia's east-west pipeline — a key route that lets Gulf oil exports bypass the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.

Crude prices climbed more than 4% when markets reopened on Monday after the weekend's events, before giving back some of those gains during US morning trade. The politically sensitive average US retail price of diesel touched a new all-time high above $6.23 a gallon. Traders said a prolonged shutdown of the Saudi pipeline could remove as much as 4% of global oil supply. Satellite imagery has shown fire damage along parts of the route, though Riyadh has not said when operations might resume.

Oman meeting postponed

Oman had been due to host a Monday meeting with Iran and Gulf states to discuss negotiations aimed at reopening Hormuz, the world's most important oil shipping lane, which has been largely closed since the US and Israel attacked Iran at the end of February. Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi announced overnight that the meeting had been postponed. Iran said the delay came at Saudi Arabia's request.

Tehran also published a list of 77 ships it said had violated its operating protocols in Hormuz, warning they could face fines, detention or confiscation on future transits. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the average number of ships crossing the strait covertly with US support was increasing, though independent monitors have suggested oil flows may have fallen this month as fighting intensified again after a quiet August.

A dilemma for Washington

The renewed Yemen conflict presents another challenge for Trump, who faces pressure from Gulf allies to help contain the Houthis but has sought to avoid opening a major new front in the regional war. Saudi Arabia has led a coalition battling the Houthis since 2015, but the conflict had largely quietened under a ceasefire in recent years. Fighting reignited this month, with the Houthis pushing back forces aligned with the internationally recognised government.

The International Organization for Migration estimates that 82,000 Yemenis have fled the fighting since the start of the month as the Houthis swept into cities, including the historic Red Sea port of Mocha last week.

Aisha Muhammad, an elderly woman burning twigs to heat a kettle in government-held territory near Taiz, said she had left behind two daughters and three sons who could not escape. "They can't even go out to the market to get food and drinking water. They are being blocked and shot at, so they are trapped inside their homes," she said. "They cannot reach us, and we cannot return to them. This is a trial from God."

Saudi state media reported that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met US regional commander Admiral Brad Cooper in Jeddah on Monday. Three sources said Washington has so far resisted Saudi requests for direct military intervention beyond intelligence support. Trump said over the weekend that he had spoken with the crown prince and that the Houthis had also contacted Washington urging it to stay out of the conflict.

The United States bombed Houthi targets for two months in 2025 before Trump halted the campaign after reaching a ceasefire with the group. Trump, who attended a golf tournament at one of his resorts in Ireland, said over the weekend that he expected the Iran war to end shortly after November's US midterm elections, after which oil prices would "drop like a rock".