Houthis seize Yemen's Red Sea coast after routing Saudi-backed forces

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The next round of negotiations between Israel and Lebanon in Rome have been delayed until October, a US official said Friday.

While the talks will not go ahead as planned in September, the Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors will meet at the State Department in Washington next week "to discuss ongoing developments and the continued implementation" of a framework deal agreed in June, the official said on customary condition of anonymity.

An Iraqi military commander was dismissed early on Saturday after investigations confirmed the latest drone attacks targeting Saudi Arabia originated from Iraq, according to a statement by Iraq's prime minister's office.

The commander led operations in Maysan province in southern Iraq, according to the statement.

Iraq welcomed Saudi Arabia's decision to hold off on retaliation after Riyadh said drones launched from Iraqi territory struck its East-West pipeline.

Iraq condemned any attack threatening Saudi security and said its prime minister had ordered an investigation into those responsible, according to a statement from its armed forces.

Saudi Arabia said drones launched from Iraq attacked its East-West pipeline, but said it would not retaliate for now following a request from Iraq's prime minister, while reserving the right to take all necessary measures to protect its sovereignty, security and critical facilities, according to a Saudi foreign ministry statement.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan discussed regional developments and recent attacks targeting Saudi Arabia in a call with his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, a Turkish diplomatic source said on Friday.

Last month, NATO member Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed a joint defense agreement that includes a mutual defense clause similar to NATO's Article 5.

Lebanon's army on Friday arrested a relative of ousted Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad, as well as the son of famous Lebanese drug lord Nouh Zaiter, a security source told AFP.

The source, requesting anonymity, said that the military "arrested three people, including Suleiman Hilal al-Assad, the son of ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's cousin" while they were caught using drugs in the eastern Bekaa region.

"Among those arrested was also the son of Nouh Zaiter," who is named Ali, the source added, referring to a famous Lebanese drug lord who was captured by the army last year.

The source also said that "the Syrian detainee is a civilian" and not a former officer.

Saudi authorities shut the East-West oil pipeline in the Riyadh and Medina areas after it came under attack, injuring a number of people, an energy ministry official told state media on Friday.

"The East-West pipeline in the Riyadh and Medina regions was subjected to several attacks on Thursday morning," the official told the SPA news agency, adding: "The pipeline was stopped as a precaution, and the attacks resulted in some injuries."

Ten Iranian fishermen who went missing in August off Iran's southern coast and were later found in the neighbouring United Arab Emirates will return home on Friday, state media reported.

The anglers went missing as fighting raged in the Middle East war, with the Strait of Hormuz a major flashpoint between Tehran and Washington, which are vying for control of the strategic waterway.

"These 10 Iranians left Dubai a few minutes ago," Iranian state news agency IRNA reported earlier today, citing the Iranian consulate general in the UAE.

They were returning to Iran by plane to the port city of Bandar Abbas on the other side of the Gulf, IRNA said.

A spokesperson for Yemen's military says it had launched airstrikes on the road between Taiz and Mocha, the coastal city seized by Houthi forces on Thursday.

Israel has carried out multiple airstrikes on the south Lebanon town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, Lebanon's state-run news agency has reported.

The National News Agency also reported raids in Al-Mansouri in Tyre district.

An adviser to Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei called the advance in Yemen by Tehran-backed Houthi fighters a "resounding victory" on Friday, after they seized a key island in the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait.

"Congratulations on this resounding victory, Ansar Allah," Mohammad Mokhber wrote on X, referring to the Houthis by their formal name.

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis have seized control of the country's entire Red Sea coast, a military official from the internationally recognised government told AFP on Friday, consolidating the group's control of the vital waterway.

The official said that all territory under government control "on the western coast has fallen", after the Houthis seized the strategic Mayyun Island and the Greater and Lesser Hanish islands in the Bab al-Mandab strait as they seek to choke off Saudi oil exports.

Iran's foreign ministry said the country would meet with Gulf states in Oman on Monday to discuss the strategic Strait of Hormuz, which the Islamic republic has blockaded during the Middle East war.

"This meeting is intended to promote better understanding among the countries of the region and help strengthen shared regional security," the ministry said in a statement on Friday, adding: "Iraq and other littoral Persian Gulf states" will participate.

• The Houthis have seized Yemen's Red Sea coast following a lightning offensive against government forces, deepening the Iran-backed group's control over the crucial Bab al-Mandeb shipping lane.
   
• Iran, Gulf states and Iraq will hold a regional meeting in Oman on Monday to discuss the Strait of Hormuz.
   
• Israel has killed at least one person and injured another nine in its latest attack on Gaza.