Saudi Arabia Intercepts Houthi Missiles Targeting Riyadh as Three Tankers Catch Fire in Strait of Hormuz

Saudi Arabia said its air defences intercepted two Houthi missiles targeting Riyadh early on Sunday, November 15, 2026, as the war in the Gulf produced a second flashpoint overnight — three oil tankers exploding and catching fire in the Strait of Hormuz. The Saudi-led coalition said both ballistic missiles were destroyed before they could reach the capital, and Saudi civil defence warned residents of potential danger before saying the threat had passed.

Houthi Missiles Targeting Riyadh: What the Coalition Said

Coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki said Saudi air defences intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles launched by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels toward Riyadh, announcing the interception in a post on X. Saudi civil defence had first warned of potential danger in the capital, then confirmed that the danger had passed. No damage was reported in the first accounts of the attack.

The coalition also said it intercepted two drones launched toward the capital and southern regions. It is the latest in a run of near-daily attacks on the kingdom. On Wednesday, November 11, the coalition said it had destroyed three cruise missiles headed for the Riyadh region, the second straight day of interceptions, and Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree claimed November 13 drone attacks on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport and an East-West pipeline pumping station. Last Sunday, a Houthi strike damaged an Aramco administrative building in Riyadh's financial district, and last month a strike on King Khalid International Airport killed 13 people and wounded more than 300.

Three Tankers Catch Fire in the Strait of Hormuz

Separately, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy and the Armed Forces' Navy said three oil tankers exploded and caught fire after striking naval mines in and around the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday. According to Iranian state media IRIB, two of the vessels were allegedly attempting to cross the strategic waterway without authorisation, with their navigation and tracking signals switched off. The IRGC Navy separately said two violating oil tankers caught fire after striking naval mines east of the strait, and Iranian forces warned commercial vessels against entering restricted maritime areas.

The tanker claims come from Iranian state sources and have not been independently verified. They fit a pattern of mounting incidents in the waterway: reports on November 14 said five ships had been hit or affected by incidents in and around the Strait of Hormuz within 24 hours. The strait is one of the world's most important oil transit routes, so any disruption there immediately worries global energy markets.

Why the Strait of Hormuz Matters for Oil and Shipping

The US military says it is continuing operations to keep the waterway open while enforcing its naval blockade against Iran. US Central Command said more than 1.7 billion barrels of crude oil had been shipped through the Strait of Hormuz by Gulf partners under US protection, and it shared an image of US Air Force F-16 fighter jets patrolling regional waters. It underlines how much of the world's oil moves through a channel that has now seen repeated mine strikes, fires and military warnings in a few weeks.

Iran Accuses the US of Trying to Starve Its People

The military incidents came as Iran accused the United States of threatening to starve its people through an economic blockade. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei was reacting to remarks by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio after a G7 foreign ministers' meeting in France, where Rubio said Washington's economic pressure was affecting Iran and military action was not necessary yet. Baghaei quoted Rubio as saying Iranians have to eat eventually, and called the remarks an admission that Washington is pursuing war crimes.

Trump Signals Uncertainty Over What Comes Next

US President Donald Trump has acknowledged that the war and its impact on the global economy may have contributed to the Republican Party's poor performance in the recent midterm elections. After meeting Qatar's prime minister, Trump called the conflict militarily effectively over, suggesting further major US strikes were unlikely — but he later said Washington no longer needed a deal with Tehran, and Vice President JD Vance's attention was reportedly redirected away from peace negotiations. For now, the administration has kept up economic pressure and its naval blockade rather than launching another major military offensive.

Sunday's interception and the tanker fires show the Gulf war still escalating on two fronts — in the skies over Saudi Arabia and on the water in the Strait of Hormuz. With missiles flying almost daily and ships burning in the world's most important oil chokepoint, the next move belongs to Washington, Riyadh and Tehran.