Bab el Mandeb Strait: Implications of Houthi attacks on ships

Bab el Mandeb, often described by experts as the "lungs" through which Gulf oil and East Asian goods flow to the world, faces heightened tensions as Houthis in Yemen target international ships passing through the Strait.

The Bab el Mandeb is a critical maritime passage, and experts are now considering the implications if Houthi escalation reaches the point of closing the Strait.

Who are the most affected by this step?

If the Houthi escalation reaches the point of closing the Strait, it would deal a significant blow to US strategy against China and jeopardize American commercial interests in the region.

The closure would also impact China, disrupting its supply chains towards the Red Sea basin, North Africa, the Eastern Mediterranean, and Europe.

The potential closure of Bab el Mandeb becomes a nightmare for the European Union in light of Russia's war on Ukraine and the looming threat to its energy exports from Arab Gulf countries as an alternative to the currently halted Russian gas.

The impact is not limited to the West; the economies of Red Sea adjacent countries, such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt, would suffer substantial losses if navigation in the Strait were disrupted. This includes losses in the tourism sector along the coasts of these nations and congestion in their ports.

In response to these concerns, the United States and Israel have proposed establishing a naval force to protect ships in international waters and ensure their passage through waterways.

The participating countries are yet to be confirmed, although the "i24" Israeli channel reports suggest that Israel has approached several nations, including Britain and Japan, to join the force.