The Red Sea and the Houthis
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which sits at the southern tip of the Red Sea, has become an increasingly dangerous chokepoint off the coast of Yemen, with the rebel Houthi group targeting merchant and other ships there linked to Israel, the US or UK for attack or seizure. The group’s motive is ‘retribution’ for Israel’s war in Gaza. The US and the UK and others have taken military action in response to the Houthi attacks, which have had a significant impact on global trade, as well as on delivery of humanitarian aid to Yemen. Escalating conflict in the Middle East looks set to have continued impact on the Red Sea situation.
Considering the issues in this Global Insight podcast:
- Charles Dunne, non-resident fellow at the Arab Center in Washington, DC;
- Jan Hoffmann, Chief of Trade Logistics at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, Geneva;
- Wesley Wood, Regional Representative for the Middle East on the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee, and a partner at Al Tamimi & Company, Dubai; and
- Motaz Salama, researcher in the Gulf Studies Unit at the Cairo-based Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies.
Music credit: Music by audiocofffee.pixabay.com