March 27 (Reuters) - Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said on Friday they were ready to intervene militarily if other countries joined the United States and Israel in their war against Iran, or if the Red Sea was used to launch attacks on the Islamic Republic.

"We confirm that our fingers are on the trigger for direct military intervention" if any new alliances join Washington and Israel against Iran and its allies, or if the Red Sea is used for "hostile operations" against Iran, the group's military spokesperson Yahya Saree said in a televised speech.

The world's largest energy conference wrapped up in Houston on Friday with the crisis caused by the US-Israel war on Iran dominating discussions -- but with little to show for it beyond a prevailing sense of uncertainty.

A week of meetings for CERAWeek -- dubbed the "Davos of Energy" -- saw around 10,000 executives and experts gather to discuss the latest in their industry.

"The industry is underestimating the geopolitical turmoil and geopolitical risk that's ahead," said Mark Brownstein, vice president of the Environmental Defense Fund.

Israeli authorities said an Iranian missile attack killed a man in Tel Aviv on Friday, as Tehran pressed its retaliatory strikes across the region a month into the war.

The Israeli military said it had "identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel" in at least five rounds in just over five hours, triggering air defence systems and warning sirens late on Friday and early Saturday.

The Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency medical service said a man was killed in Tel Aviv in one of the attacks.

US special envoy Steve Witkoff said Friday he believes Iran will hold talks with Washington "this week," as President Donald Trump reiterated his claims that Tehran wants to make a deal.

"We think there will be meetings this week, we're certainly hopeful for it," Witkoff told a business forum in Miami, where Trump is due to speak later, when asked about Iran negotiations.

The businessman-turned-roving envoy added that the United States expected a response from Tehran to its peace plan.

Pakistan's prime minister said he had a "detailed" call with Iran's president on Saturday, as foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey gathered in Islamabad for talks on the war in the Middle East.

The diplomats were due to attend talks Sunday and Monday "on a range of issues, including efforts to de-escalate tensions in the region", the Pakistan foreign ministry said.

Shehbaz Sharif's government has emerged as a key facilitator between Iran and the United States as their war drags on, serving as an intermediary for messages between the two sides.

WASHINGTON, March 27 (Reuters) - Elon Musk joined a phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday about the war in Iran, the New York Times reported on Friday, citing two U.S. officials.

It was unclear why Musk was on the call or whether he spoke, the newspaper said.

(Reporting by Jasper Ward and Bhargav Acharya;Editing by David Ljunggren)

By Catherine Cartier and Emilie Madi

BEIRUT, March 27 (Reuters) - When Israeli strikes rained down on southern Lebanon in early March, Hawraa Houmani, 29 years old and almost nine months pregnant, fled her village near Nabatieh to a shelter in a school in Beirut. She no longer had access to the doctor that had cared for her throughout her pregnancy.

“I had prepared myself physically and mentally for that doctor, for her to be the one delivering,” Houmani said.

BEIRUT, March 27 (Reuters) - More than 400 fighters fromHezbollah have been killed since the Lebanese armed group launched the opening salvoes of a new war with Israel on March 2, two sources familiar with Hezbollah's count told Reuters.

The figure was the first overall toll provided of Hezbollah fighters killed in Israel's expanding air and ground campaign in Lebanon. The group has issued sporadic notices for a few individual fighters but has not provided an official overall toll.

March 27 (Reuters) - The United Nations said on Friday it was setting up a task force to design a mechanism to keep trade flowing through the Strait of Hormuz, warning that disruptions caused by the Iran war risked greater food shortages and humanitarian crises worldwide.

"Immediate action is essential to mitigate these consequences," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

U.N. Under-Secretary-General Jorge Moreira da Silva, executive director of the United Nations Office for Project Services, will lead the project, Dujarric said.

By Rachel More and James Mackenzie

BERLIN, March 27 (Reuters) - Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Friday expressed scepticism that the United States and Israel had a clear strategy to end the war in Iran but he said Germany would in principle be ready to help stabilise the region after the end of hostilities.

Since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, Iran has launched strikes against Israel, U.S. bases and Gulf states, as well as effectively blocking Middle East fuel exports via the Strait of Hormuz.