Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis announced a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia on Monday threatening to choke off the vital Bab el-Mandeb strait. If fully closed then the blockade could sever 7% of the global oil supply and worsening a 10% drop already caused by the escalating US-Iran conflict in the Gulf.
The Houthis declared the immediate maritime embargo as retaliation for what they described as an "unjust and oppressive siege" by Saudi Arabia.
The escalation arrives paradoxically alongside a renewed diplomatic push. A senior Iranian official confirmed that mediators have proposed a 10-day ceasefire to salvage last month’s fragile interim agreement. Iran’s Foreign Ministry acknowledged active diplomatic contacts while Pakistani government sources revealed that Iran’s Interior Minister recently visited Islamabad to ask Pakistan to resume its mediation role between Tehran and Washington.
Despite these diplomatic efforts, military hostilities remain intense. The region witnessed another night of US strikes on Iranian cities and retaliatory attacks by Iran's Revolutionary Guards on American military assets.
Facing intense domestic pressure over soaring gasoline prices the US President Donald Trump defended the recent strikes and stating they were necessary to honor up to three American service members killed in recent Iranian attacks. Global oil markets remain volatile also fluctuating between fears of prolonged supply disruptions and hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough.
