Houthis take control of Bab al-Mandab, raising global energy market concerns

Iran-backed Houthi rebels have taken full control of Yemen’s strategically vital Bab al-Mandab Strait and Perim Island in the Red Sea after Saudi-backed government forces withdrew, AFP reported, citing local government officials and eyewitnesses. Houthi fighters are now positioned along the strait’s coastal areas and on the island, placing the sensitive international energy transport route under their control.

Houthi forces launched a major offensive against Saudi-backed government troops last week and captured the entire coastal area around the strait through a series of advances.

The Saudi military coalition has intensified retaliatory airstrikes in response to the Houthi advance. Houthi-controlled media reported that the coalition carried out two airstrikes on Mocha Airport, but the attacks failed to halt the rebels’ advance.

The conflict in Yemen has added a new dimension to Middle East tensions following military clashes involving Iran, the United States and Israel, as well as reports of a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

Bab al-Mandab is vital for trade between Asia and Europe through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. The route is particularly significant for Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s leading oil exporters.

International crude oil prices, including Brent crude and WTI, exceeded $100 per barrel immediately after the Houthi takeover.

Farea Al-Muslimi, a researcher at Chatham House, told AFP: “Although Saudi Arabia has made every effort to avoid war, the situation has now gone beyond control. The Houthis have crossed all limits, and unless action is taken now, Saudi Arabia will have to pay a far more terrible price in the future.”

At least 500 people, most of them fighters, have been killed in the conflict over the past week. The International Organization for Migration said nearly 20,000 people have been forced to flee their homes amid the escalating violence.

Residents who fled the port city of Mocha described the situation as “catastrophic”, while reports also emerged of attacks by robbers along escape routes.

The UN Security Council has called an emergency meeting to review the situation. Hans Grundberg, the UN special envoy for Yemen, warned that the conflict could trigger a wider regional disaster.

The United Kingdom has called on the Security Council to urge the Houthis to halt their attacks and immediately return to the path of peace.

Major fighting between the Houthis and the Saudi military coalition resumed in July this year after a 2022 truce. The current escalation is pushing Yemen back towards the devastating civil war that previously killed millions of people and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.