Dangers of a wider war

A DANGEROUS new front has opened in the Middle East war. Yemen and the Red Sea are now the latest battleground. This has widened the regional conflict and added another layer to the escalating confrontation between the US and Iran. The entry of new actors, Iran-aligned Ansarullah Houthis and Iraqi militias, poses a serious security and economic threat to Saudi Arabia. Oil prices have soared as a result and fuel supplies to global markets have become more uncertain. Diplomacy is deadlocked. Efforts to revive talks between the US and Iran had stalled before these developments. Now they appear to have hit a wall. The dramatic turn of events came with the Houthis’ lightning military offensive along Yemen’s west coast, which culminated in their capture of the strategic Red Sea port city of Mocha and Perim island in the Bab al-Mandeb strait. This gave them control of a key shipping route.

Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces failed to prevent the advance and the loss of more strategic territory to the Houthis. At the same time, the Houthis launched attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure. The vital East-West pipeline across Saudi Arabia was forced to close after a drone strike by Iraq-based militias. Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and Houthi control of another maritime chokepoint — the narrow Bab al-Mandeb strait — has severely constrained KSA’s ability to export oil. Tehran claims the Houthis are acting independently. Nevertheless, the action by the Houthis and Iraqi militias could have been coordinated by Iran to mount pressure on the US and counter its attempt to loosen Iranian control of the Strait of Hormuz by American warships escorting more vessels through the waterway. It may also be a res­ponse to US economic warfare which is placing fur­ther strain on the…