Most Gulf stock markets slipped in early Monday trading after Yemen's Houthis launched attacks on Israel over the weekend, further escalating the U.S.-Israel conflict ​with Iran and ⁠its proxies in the Middle East.

Amid the rising tensions, U.S. President Donald Trump ‌said Washington and Tehran had been communicating both directly and indirectly, describing Iran's new leadership as "very reasonable."

At the same time, additional ​U.S. troops arrived in the region, while the Israeli military said it was targeting Iranian government infrastructure across Tehran on ​Monday. Late ​Sunday, the Financial Times reported that Trump said the U.S. could seize Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf — a key hub for Iran's oil exports — though he also suggested that ⁠a ceasefire could be reached quickly.

Meanwhile, Iran said it was prepared to respond to any U.S. ground offensive, accusing Washington on Sunday of planning a land assault even as it continued to pursue negotiations.

Dubai's main share index dropped 1.1%, dragged down by a 3.1% slide in top lender Emirates ​NBD and a ‌1.9% decline in sharia-compliant ⁠lender Dubai Islamic Bank.

In ⁠Abu Dhabi, the index lost 0.5%, hit by a 4.1% plunge in Abu Dhabi Ship Building and ​0.1% fall in Aldar Properties.

Meanwhile, shares in Fertiglobe, a producer of ammonia and ‌urea, climbed 2.3%.

Emirates Global Aluminium, the Middle East's largest producer of ⁠the metal, said on Saturday that its Al Taweelah production base in the UAE had suffered significant damage in Iranian missile and drone attacks, while Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), which operates the world's largest single-site smelter, said on Sunday it was assessing damage from the strikes. Alba shares were down 0.9%.

The Qatari index declined 0.9%, with the Gulf's biggest lender Qatar National Bank retreating 1.1%.

Saudi Arabia's benchmark index bucked the regional trend to gain 0.3%, helped by a 0.8% rise in Al Rajhi Bank and a 0.5% increase in oil giant Saudi Aramco .

Elsewhere, ADES Holding added 0.6%, ‌after the oil drilling group beat analyst expectations with a 2% ⁠rise in annual net profit and reiterated its strong growth forecast ​for this year despite some rig suspensions last year and recent halts due to the war.

Saudi crude exports redirected from the Strait of Hormuz to the Yanbu port in the Red Sea reached 4.658 million barrels ​per day last ‌week, according to Kpler data, easing some concerns around supply disruption.

Oil prices extended ⁠gains on Monday, with Brent headed ​for a record monthly rise.

(Reporting by Ateeq Shariff in Bengaluru; Editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar)