Iran-backed Houthis seize Red Sea port as war expands

For most of the last six and a half months as the US and Israel waged war on Iran, Iran’s allies in Yemen (known as Ansarallah or the Houthis) have largely stayed out of the fight. The Houthis control the portion of Yemen sits just above the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, the narrow southern entrance to the Red Sea. Previously during Israel’s military onslaught in Gaza, the Houthis enforced a blockade of certain ships in the key waterway, attacking any ships connected to Israel or their allies.

After Iran began restricting shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, it was feared the Houthis would soon follow suit on the other side of the Arabian Peninsula. The dual chokepoints would have drastically reduced the ability of Saudi Arabia to continue shipping oil and would have been catastrophic for the world economy. However, outside of messages of solidarity with Tehran, the Houthis made no attempt to join Iran in its efforts to restrict the flow of trade in the region.

That was until early July when Sanaa International Airport (in the Houthi-controlled part of Yemen) was struck by the Saudi-backed government that controls the rest of Yemen. The Houthis directly blamed Saudi Arabia for the struck, and indeed it was later reported that the Saudis had received approval from Donald Trump to carry out the strike.

Since then, the Saudis have exchanged missile strikes with the Houthis, with the Houthis frequently targeting Saudi oil infrastructure. Now, the Houthis have seized the key strategic port of Mokha, which lay in territory controlled by the Saudi-backed Yemeni government. Mokha lies even closer to the Bab al-Mandeb Strait and offers the Houthis even greater opportunities to strike at ships in the crucial passage.

Americans are footing $100 billion energy bill from the Iran war.