Live updates: Russian foreign minister says he’s heading to Iran for talks to avoid return to ‘full-scale war’

The death toll from a Houthi missile strike on a camp in Yemen’s government-controlled Shabwa province rose to 50 on Monday, a government official told French news agency AFP, after military sources previously put the death toll at more than 30.

Iran-backed rebels fired ballistic missiles at the al-Alam military camp in the southern province of Shabwa.

“The death toll stands at at least 50, with more than 100 people injured, some in critical condition,” said Fahad al-Khalifi, deputy governor of Shabwa.

He added that hospitals in the province were overwhelmed and had been forced to transfer the most seriously injured to facilities in the neighboring regions of Hadhramaut and Aden.

CBS/AFP

Iran-backed Houthi rebels struck a government forces military camp in southern Yemen on Monday, killing at least 20 soldiers, two Yemeni military officials said.

Rebels fired ballistic missiles at the al-Alam military camp in the southern province of Shabwa in an attack that wounded at least two dozen people, officials said.

Military officials from Yemen’s internationally recognized government spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

Yemen’s decade-long civil war has intensified and become intertwined with the broader regional conflict sparked by the U.S. war on Iran in recent months, as the Houthis, seen as one of Iran’s most powerful proxy forces, attack the government’s Saudi backers on their home turf.

Houthi strikes on Saudi infrastructure, including civilian airports, have killed more than 20 people in recent weeks, and President Trump has said he plans to join Saudi operations against the rebels. The Houthis warned that if the United States intervened, it would result in “swift and painful” retaliation against American personnel and interests in the region.

CBS/AP

Oil prices were lower early Monday, with Brent crude, the international standard, down 2.5% at $107.16 a barrel and benchmark U.S. crude down 2.2% at $96.84 a barrel.

Prices fell after the president Trump signed an executive order Friday evening suspend new US sanctions against Russia just days before they take effect, attracting disappointment of Ukrainethe move likely leading to an increase in Russia’s energy exports.

Mr. Trump’s decision came shortly after he said earlier this month that he had reached an agreement diesel agreement with Russia in an effort to bring down high U.S. fuel prices ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.

But despite Mr. Trump’s controversial efforts to ease energy costs for Americans, oil prices have remained much higher than before the Iran war, largely because of lingering supply chain risks caused by the Middle East crisis.

On Friday, the price of Brent crude reached nearly $110 per barrel, its highest level since mid-May.

CBS/AP

A tugboat traveling near the Strait of Hormuz was hit by two unknown projectiles, a British maritime surveillance agency said on Sunday.

The British Navy’s Maritime Commercial Operations Center (UKMTO) said in a statement that a tugboat sailing south off the coast of the United Arab Emirates “reported being hit by two unknown projectiles.”

“The tug sustained damage but continued on its way,” the agency said, “a minor casualty was reported.”

Last week, 10 attacks on commercial shipping took place in and near the strait, according to the UKMTO, which said October had already become the worst month for attacks on shipping in the strait since the early days of the war in March.

The United States issued a security alert Monday calling on Americans in the Middle East to “exercise increased vigilance.”

“The Iran-backed Houthis have engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia, including attacking civilian airports and other critical infrastructure, resulting in civilian casualties and severe travel disruptions,” the statement said.

It adds that hostilities could escalate quickly and Iran-backed groups could target U.S. interests abroad “or in locations associated with the United States and Americans around the world.”

At least 20 people, including an American, were killed in a week in October when Houthi rebels attacked Saudi airports.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was scheduled to make his first visit to Iran on Monday since the United States and Israel sparked the ongoing war with the Islamic Republic by launching joint strikes on February 28.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Sunday that the two sides would discuss “regional and international developments”, while Lavrov said his visit was aimed “to prevent the return of a full-scale war”.

Russian President Vladimir Putin told his Iranian counterpart in early October that Moscow was ready to contribute to mediation efforts.

Iran presented a seven-day ceasefire proposal in late September calling for an end to the US naval blockade of Iranian ports, the lifting of sanctions on Iranian oil, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the resumption of direct negotiations on Tehran’s nuclear program. President Trump rejected the proposal, which Iran says remains on the table.

CBS/AFP

Conflict raged on Sunday between the Houthis and the Saudi-led military coalition fighting the Iran-backed rebel group, as the two sides exchanged strikes.

In Riyadh, where intensifying violence has disrupted residents’ lives, the iconic Kingdom Center skyscraper has ordered “mandatory” remote working for office tenants until further notice. Although the reason for the order was not provided, it follows a security alert and two drone interceptions around the capital, in addition to a number of Houthi attacks on Saudi targets in recent weeks.

Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition, which supports the internationally recognized government in war-ravaged Yemen, has launched repeated air raids on Houthi-controlled parts of the country. A suspected Saudi airstrike in northern Yemen killed at least nine people and injured 16 others on Sunday, the Houthis’ Saba news agency reported.

The coalition announced on Sunday that two pilots were killed when their helicopter crashed in Najran, near the Yemeni border, attributing the incident to a “technical malfunction”. The Houthis said they had “downed an Apache helicopter belonging to the Saudi enemy” in the same area.

CBS/AFP

Iran’s foreign minister said Sunday that Tehran’s conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz have not changed, but its proposal for a limited ceasefire with the United States to reopen the vital waterway remains on the table.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency on Sunday that Tehran was still reviewing US “comments” on Iran’s proposal for a seven-day ceasefire, first presented in September but rejected by President Trump.

“If they respect our conditions, the Strait of Hormuz will reopen on the sixth day and negotiations will begin on the seventh day,” Araghchi said, referring to Iran’s proposed timetable, which calls for the United States to lift its naval blockade on Iranian ports and ease sanctions against the country, among other concessions.

“Our conditions are fair, and if the United States is willing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, it will be able to satisfy them within a few days,” Araghchi said.