Saudi-Backed Forces Launched Airstrikes09/09 06:22

   The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen said Wednesday that Saudi-backed 
forces had launched dozens of airstrikes overnight across four Yemeni provinces 
after rebel attacks on Saudi Arabia ignited fires at several oil facilities and 
wounded dozens of people.

   (AP) -- The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen said Wednesday that 
Saudi-backed forces had launched dozens of airstrikes overnight across four 
Yemeni provinces after rebel attacks on Saudi Arabia ignited fires at several 
oil facilities and wounded dozens of people.

   Separately, Iranian state media said Iranian forces struck several tankers 
and two U.S. ships in retaliation for U.S. strikes on Iranian ships on Tuesday. 
The U.S. Central Command said claims that American warships had been struck 
were false.

   Elsewhere, an Israeli official said the British Consulate in Jerusalem would 
close within 30 days in response to the U.K.'s decision to ban trade with 
settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

   Here's a look at the latest news in the Middle East. Full coverage can be 
found here.

   A state media outlet claims Iranian forces struck several ships

   According to Iran's state media IRIB, the country's forces had struck eight 
oil tankers and two U.S. vessels in retaliation for U.S. strikes on five 
Iranian tankers on Tuesday, and that it had also targeted another 10 ships 
attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

   In a social media post, the U.S. Central Command said the claim that Iran's 
Revolutionary Guard had struck two Navy warships was false. "No U.S. Navy 
warship has been struck; all IRGC attempted attacks failed."

   The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center, which reports maritime 
incidents, said it had received a report "involving several merchant vessels" 
in the northern part of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

   Reports indicated the ships "were subject to disabling fire as part of 
ongoing military activity in the region," but the UKMTO could not confirm 
whether there were any casualties.

   The U.S. Central Command said in a social media post on Tuesday that it 
destroyed five Iranian crude oil tankers after Tehran fired missiles at a U.S. 
warship twice over two days.

   U.S. President Donald Trump has taken a dual economic and military approach 
as he struggles to bring an end to the war.

   The ongoing conflict pushed the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil past 
$100 on Wednesday.

   The Houthi rebels say Saudi-backed forces strike Yemen's provinces

   Houthi spokesman Nasruddin Amer said on X on Wednesday morning that 
Saudi-backed forces had launched 32 airstrikes overnight across Yemen's 
provinces of Taiz, Hodeida, Jawf and Marib. There were no immediate reports of 
damage or injuries.

   Saudi authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

   The strikes come a day after Houthi attacks on several oil facilities and 
utilities in Saudi Arabia wounded 73 people, in a major escalation in the 
renewed conflict between an important U.S. ally and the Iranian-backed rebels 
in Yemen. They follow weeks of intensifying clashes between the Houthis and 
Saudi-backed government forces in Yemen, which shattered a four-year truce in 
the country's civil war.

   The flare-up brings further instability to the region and threatens to 
squeeze shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb strait, a critical trade route that 
has helped cushion the blow from Iran's chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, the 
critical waterway between Iran and Oman through which a fifth of the world's 
traded oil passed before the war.

   The U.S. Embassy in Yemen said Tuesday that the country's "legitimate" 
government, apparently referring to the internationally recognized government, 
has the right to defend its people and "end the Houthis' ability to inflict 
terror." The embassy also said Saudi Arabia has the right to defend itself.

   "The Houthis started this conflict and must bear the consequences of their 
aggression," the embassy posted on social media.

   The United Nations and Turkey condemn Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia

   U.N. Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg said the missile and drone 
attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels on Saudi Arabia "threaten to widen the 
conflict, put civilians at grave risk and undermine efforts toward a political 
solution."

   Turkey's Foreign Ministry, in a statement issued late Tuesday, called on the 
Iran-backed group "to put an end to their aggressive actions immediately."

   Last month, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed a defense agreement 
that would treat an attack on one as an attack on all three, solidifying 
cooperation between them at a time of growing regional security concerns.

   "We reiterate our support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of 
Saudi Arabia," the ministry said.

   Israel to shut British Consulate in Jerusalem

   Israel plans to shutter the British Consulate in Jerusalem within a month, 
an Israeli official told The Associated Press on Wednesday. The consulate will 
be closed within 30 days, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity 
to discuss information from closed-door meetings.

   The clock started Tuesday because that's when Israel's government announced 
it would take a series of measures -- from closing the consulate to banning 
certain British officials from the country -- in response to the U.K.'s 
decision to ban trade with settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The 
British Consulate did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

   -By Julia Frankel

   Protesters rally in South Korea over potential Strait of Hormuz deployment

   Dozens of protesters rallied in South Korea 's capital on Wednesday calling 
on the government to reject any U.S. demand to deploy military assets to the 
Strait of Hormuz as Seoul faces U.S. calls to help secure the crucial waterway.

   Holding signs and letter cards that read "Oppose the deployment" and "Do not 
join a war of aggression," the protesters chanted slogans accusing the Trump 
administration of pressuring Seoul to provide military assistance.

   The government of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has said it sent a 
team of military investigators to the Middle East to assess the security 
situation amid the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran, but has stressed that it 
has not made any decision on whether to deploy military assets to the region.

   Trump has openly demanded that South Korea help secure safe passage through 
the Strait of Hormuz, telling a Fox News interview last week that Seoul was 
unwilling to help despite a U.S. military presence there to provide security.

   Iran has warned of "serious consequences" if South Korea participates in 
U.S. operations around the waterway.