Recent Houthi missile and drone strikes on Saudi airports, Aramco facilities, and border regions have intensified following the collapse of the 2022 truce and Houthi territorial gains along Yemen’s Red Sea coast near the Bab al-Mandab Strait in September 2026. Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces launched a counteroffensive in early October with airstrikes, prompting Houthi retaliation that included deadly attacks on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport. Small-scale Houthi cross-border raids into Saudi military posts occurred as recently as late October, alongside continued exchanges of fire. Saudi Arabia has sought additional allied support under defense pacts while pursuing strikes on Houthi positions in Yemen. These developments sustain a cycle of escalation that directly shapes trader assessments of any ground entry into Saudi territory.