Iran threatens to turn Middle East into 'graveyard' for Americans

The US-Israeli war against Iran escalated on Saturday, with Iranian officials threatening to turn the Middle East into a graveyard for US soldiers. At the same time, the Iran-backed Houthi group became involved in the war for the first time, firing missiles at Israel.

Iranian authorities issued a warning on Saturday that the Middle East will become a graveyard for American soldiers, further intensifying the American-Israeli war against this country.

In an address to state media, the spokesman for the Khatam al-Anbiya military organization controlled by the Revolutionary Guards stressed that US President Donald Trump and US military commanders have already understood the situation as such.

"Trump and the US military commanders must have clearly understood that the region will become a graveyard for American soldiers and they will have no choice but to surrender to the divine will of the heroic people and brave warriors of Islam," said officer Ebrahim Zolfaghari.

Zolfaghari's statement came a day after Israel threatened to escalate and expand its military campaign against Iran, striking the country's nuclear facilities.

After that, Iran vowed revenge and attacked a military base in Saudi Arabia, injuring dozens of American soldiers and damaging several aircraft.

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Explosions were also heard in the Israeli capital, Tel Aviv, with emergency services reporting 11 areas affected. Loud explosions were also heard in Jerusalem.

The attacks by Iran and the Lebanese group Hezbollah were joined on Saturday by Yemen's Houthi rebels, who fired a missile at Israel, in their first involvement in the conflict since the start of the US-Israeli operation with Iran.

Houthi Brigadier General Yahya Saree said the rebels had fired ballistic missile barrages at what he called "sensitive Israeli military targets" in the south of the country.

"The Yemeni Armed Forces, with the help of Allah the Almighty and relying on Him, have carried out the first military operation using a barrage of ballistic missiles targeting sensitive Israeli military targets in the south of occupied Palestine. This operation was carried out in parallel with the heroic actions of our Mujahideen brothers in Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon," Saree said.

Analysts have warned that the biggest threat is not related to missiles aimed at Israeli territory, but to the damage the group could cause to global energy markets.

The involvement of the Houthis – declared terrorists by the United States – risks prolonging the war in which American forces, Gulf Arab states and Israel are already involved, on various fronts.

Their entry into the conflict, ending a month-long ceasefire since the war began, has raised concerns about a blockade on two of the main maritime transport routes.

Iran has already closed the Strait of Hormuz, while the Houthis have signaled that they may do more to close the Bad al-Mandab Strait, through which 10 percent of the world's oil is transported.

Analysts have said the attack may have been intended more to send signals to Riyadh than to Jerusalem.

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Michael Horowitz, an independent defense analyst based in Israel, noted that the Houthi military spokesman has outlined specific conditions that would trigger the group's full entry into the war, including if any state actively participates in the US-Israeli war against the Iranian regime.

"This, in my opinion, is a message to the Gulf countries, especially Saudi Arabia, against getting involved in the war against Iran, and not to consider allowing American forces to use their bases," Horowitz told Radio Free Europe.

According to him, the one-month delay in involving the Houthis reflects the group's calculations and not its approach to Iran.

The Houthis may have hesitated because of the risk of diplomatic efforts that could result in diplomatic gains, as well as the fact that last year's Israeli attacks on civilian and economic targets in Houthi-controlled areas have worsened the situation on the ground.

Danny Citrinowicz, a security analyst at the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies, believes the biggest threat lies in Iran's economic campaign against the United States.

"While the Houthis' attacks on Israel should not be underestimated, from Iran's perspective, as part of a broader economic campaign against the United States, the key aspect lies in the group's ability to threaten critical energy transit routes at both seaports," he said in a post on X.

Horowitz has outlined three scenarios for the Houthis' full involvement in the conflict: a resumption of the blockade on the Red Sea, similar to operations during the Gaza war; attacks on Saudi energy facilities in the Red Sea, including the port of Yanbu - a land alternative through which Saudi oil is transported from the Persian Gulf coast to the Red Sea, bypassing Hormuz entirely; and possible attacks against US aircraft carriers in the Arabian Sea, although he doubts such efforts would succeed.

Energy market analysis firm HFI has put a figure on the potential damage. According to it, Houthi attacks on Bab al-Mandab would put Saudi oil production at risk at 4 million barrels per day.

"It won't be as bad as the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz thanks to the Suez Canal, but the market won't care," he said.

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Citrinowicz also mentioned the direction in which the trajectory is heading.

"With each passing day of the conflict, the likelihood of this scenario materializing increases. Each time, the dilemmas are more and more about when and not if something like this will happen," Citrinowicz stated.