Saudi crown prince holds talks with US Central Command chief

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with US Central Command chief Brad Cooper in Jeddah. According to the Saudi Press Agency, they discussed relations between Riyadh and Washington, as well as recent developments in the region.

The meeting comes as Yemen's Houthi rebels, who are aligned with Iran, have stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia. The Houthis have been launching strikes on Saudi vessels in the Red Sea and have captured Perim island in the Bab Al Mandeb strait, which provides access to the southern entrance of the Red Sea, as reported by The National UAE.

The southern cities of Najran, Khamis Mushait, Jazan, and Abha had been under alert due to potential danger from Houthi attacks, but all-clear notices were later issued. The Houthi attacks have prompted concern from Gulf nations, with drone strikes recently knocking out the 1,200km East-West pipeline across the Arabian Peninsula, a major route for Middle East oil exports.

Brief written by urgent.news from Middle East Eye, The National UAE, Jerusalem Post — 3 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.