Donald Trump has said he does not regret launching the war against Iran, despite concerns that the conflict and rising oil and gas prices could hurt Republicans in the November midterm elections. Oil prices have touched $108 a barrel for the first time since May after Iran-backed Houthi militants captured Yemen’s strategic port city of Mokha, raising fears it could bring them closer to targeting shipping through a critical waterway to the Red Sea. It puts the Houthis closer to their goal of targeting shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb waterway and could give Iran another potential point of leverage in its war with the US.
Mokha is around 50 miles from Bab el-Mandeb, a geopolitical chokepoint connecting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and through which about 12 per cent of the world’s goods are typically shipped. Meanwhile, Iranian officials mocked the US military after claiming they captured a cutting-edge sea drone and “picked it up like a plastic bottle”. More than 100 US military advisers are in Saudi Arabia providing intelligence and targeting support as the kingdom fights Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen, according to CNN.
The US is helping Saudi forces use real-time battlefield intelligence and providing “geospatial” targeting support, but is not directly taking part in strikes, refuelling Saudi aircraft or providing other operational assistance, the outlet reported. The deployment comes after recent Houthi advances, including the seizure of a strategic Red Sea port, raising fears that the group could threaten the Bab el-Mandeb, a key global shipping route. US officials cited by CNN believe hundreds of Iranian Revolutionary Guard officers are in Yemen helping the Houthis, potentially with the aim of closing the waterway.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reportedly called Donald Trump twice on Thursday to urge the US president to launch strikes against the Iran-backed Houthis, according to two US officials cited by Axios. The request came as Houthi forces advanced along Yemen’s Red Sea coast and moved closer to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial shipping chokepoint. Trump reportedly declined to order US strikes, however.
The Axios report says that Washington is instead increasing support for Saudi Arabia while trying to avoid getting directly involved in the wider Saudi-Houthi conflict. A senior Trump administration official said the US priority was keeping the Red Sea open while leaving the broader fight to regional allies. The Saudi request marks a sharp reversal from July, when Riyadh had told Washington it could deal with the Houthi threat itself.
The situation has deteriorated since then, with Saudi-backed Yemeni forces retreating as the Houthis advance towards the coast. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard says its navy intercepted a US-operated surface drone near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz. The Guard said it had “thwarted an aggressive mission” involving the drone, which is designed to resemble a sailboat, according to Al Jazeera.
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