Lebanon's Al-Ahed newspaper quoted Arab analyst and researcher Hassan Ali saying Saudi Arabia misjudged the strength of Yemen's Houthi forces, plunging Riyadh into a real crisis. He said recent developments on Yemen's west coast demonstrate the Houthi forces' military capability.

Al Jazeera cited U.S. officials saying about 60 million barrels of Iranian or suspected-Iranian oil are currently held on vessels under sanctions.

The Washington Post reports that almost all indicators point to a strategic disadvantage for the US in its conflict with Iran. President Trump declared in early March the US had “won” but still needed to “finish the job”; the paper says that task remains incomplete and prospects are poor. The conflict has exposed US force vulnerabilities and dispersed deployments, cost roughly $38.1bn to date, and contributed to a global energy squeeze. US military gains are limited and the campaign is politically unpopular at home, with growing congressional Republican support for ending the conflict and at least one Republican lawmaker proposing impeachment of the defense secretary over the war. Key strategic objectives have largely failed, the paper says: Iran’s proxy network remains intact; Houthi forces in Yemen recently seized Mocha port and Perim Island, effectively controlling the Bab al-Mandeb; Iranian missile and drone capabilities continue to be used against regional targets despite US claims in April that Iran’s missile program had been destroyed, and Iran has resumed ballistic missile production in underground facilities; regime-change aims have backfired—despite the killing of senior figures including Khamenei, Tehran’s leadership is intact and more consolidated; and Iran still holds about 440 kg of highly enriched uranium, location uncertain. The contest has shifted to control of key straits: flows through the Strait of Hormuz have fallen from roughly 20 mln bpd pre-conflict to about 10 mln bpd, and Iran has demonstrated the ability to close the strait for extended periods.