On Thursday, September 10, Houthi militants seized control of the port city of Mokha in Yemen. This threatens global energy flows, Reuters reports, as reported by UNN.
Details
This happened several hours after President Donald Trump said he expected the war to end after the midterm elections.
Four Yemeni government military sources said that the Houthis had strengthened their influence over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait — the southern outlet from the Red Sea and one of the world's most important maritime routes — and had begun launching strikes on the strategic Hanish Islands.
At the same time, official Tehran denies its ties to the Houthis, saying that it "has nothing to do with them."
Additionally
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, or the "Gate of Tears" (so named because of the dangerous shipping conditions), is located between Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula and Djibouti and Eritrea on the African coast. As Reuters notes, this makes the strait an important prize for the Houthis, who control Yemen's most densely populated areas and a significant part of the country's north.
It is one of the world's most important routes for transporting crude oil and fuel from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal on Egypt's Red Sea coast, as well as for goods bound for Asia, including Russian oil.
Recall
The port of Mokha on Yemen's Red Sea coast suspended commercial and maritime activity after a series of Houthi missile attacks.