Saudi crown prince called Trump twice as Houthis seized key Red Sea positions, but Washington refused direct strikes and offered intelligence insteadSaudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called U.S. President Donald Trump twice Thursday and urged him to launch strikes against Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels, but Trump refused, Axios reported, citing two U.S. officials.GalleryUS President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (Photo: REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak)Trump rejected the request, and U.S. officials said the administration does not currently intend to take direct military action against the Houthis, according to the report.The United States is concerned about the rapid escalation of fighting in Yemen and is increasing support for Saudi Arabia while seeking to avoid direct military involvement. Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, traveled to Saudi Arabia on Thursday for urgent coordination meetings, according to the report.The confrontation between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis resumed in July after Riyadh prevented an Iranian aircraft carrying senior Houthi officials from landing in Sanaa as they returned from the funeral of Iran’s former supreme leader, Ali Khamenei.At the time, bin Salman asked Trump for political backing for a Saudi strike on Sanaa airport but made clear that Riyadh did not require U.S. military assistance. Trump gave his support.The Houthis responded by attacking Saudi tankers in the Red Sea, threatening a vital route for the kingdom’s oil exports, and later expanded their attacks to Saudi energy facilities. Saudi Arabia and its Yemeni allies responded with airstrikes and ground operations against Houthi positions.Saudi Arabia’s latest request for direct U.S. military action marks a sharp shift from its position in July, when Riyadh told Washington it could deal with the Houthis on its own.U.S. military and administration officials have told their Saudi counterparts in recent weeks that Trump’s directive is to keep American forces focused on Iran and the Strait of Hormuz and avoid opening another front, according to the report.U.S. officials said that as Houthi forces advanced toward the port city of Mocha on Thursday and Saudi-backed Yemeni forces retreated, bin Salman called Trump to brief him on the deteriorating situation.Bab el-Mandab StraitSeveral hours later, the crown prince called Trump again and asked him to order strikes against the Houthis. Trump refused, but a U.S. official said the administration would provide Saudi Arabia with intelligence on the Houthis and targeting information.A senior Trump administration official indicated that Washington’s priority was to keep the Red Sea open while leaving the broader campaign against the Houthis to U.S. regional partners.“The United States is focused on protecting our core national security interests — such as ensuring freedom of navigation in the Red Sea — while empowering our regional partners to take the lead in managing and resolving regional security challenges,” the official said. “We are in continuous dialogue with Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Yemen Government regarding regional stability.”The Houthis launched a major ground offensive Thursday night, seizing large stretches of Yemen’s southwestern coast from forces loyal to the internationally recognized, Saudi-backed Yemeni government.Reports said the Houthis also seized the strategic island of Perim, also known as Mayyun, which sits in the middle of the Bab el-Mandab at its narrowest point. Control of the island could give the Iran-aligned group greater ability to influence shipping through the strait.During the offensive, in which the Houthis captured Mocha earlier Thursday, their forces also reached the Hanish Islands farther north in the southern Red Sea. At least one of the islands was captured, according to reports.A military official said the Houthis launched missile attacks against Zuqar Island, part of the Hanish archipelago, and sent boats carrying fighters to the island.The strategic island of PerimThe Bab el-Mandab connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and forms part of the maritime route linking Asia and Europe through the Suez Canal, making it one of the world’s most important shipping chokepoints.Its importance has grown further since Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz at the start of its war with the United States in late February, on the other side of the Arabian Peninsula. The closure of Hormuz sent oil prices sharply higher, and there are now fears that increased Houthi control around the Bab el-Mandab could cause further turmoil in global energy markets.Amid those concerns, crude oil prices jumped at least 5% Thursday, with Brent crude, the international benchmark, reaching $106 a barrel.Greater control of the Bab el-Mandab by Iran’s Houthi allies could also strengthen Tehran’s bargaining position in negotiations with Trump and increase the pressure Iran is seeking to exert on Washington as it escalates attacks in an effort to secure an end to the U.S. blockade.Iranian media celebrated reports of the Houthi gains Thursday. Iran’s Al-Alam television network claimed the Houthis had also seized the “last stronghold” of the Saudi-backed Yemeni government’s forces along Yemen’s western coast.Iran’s Foreign Ministry said overnight that Tehran’s position remained unchanged.“Our position remains firm regarding the need to respect Yemen’s independence and end the illegal blockade on the country,” the ministry said. “We emphasize the need for the immediate resumption of dialogue based on the agreed road map for Yemen.”