We know very well that the Houthis can target ships in the Gulf of Aden as well which is its front yard, not just ships passing through the Bab Al-Mandab waterway. So, what is going to change regarding the Saudis now controlling the Bab Al-Mandab? That stretch of water is not going to be navigation free from now onwards, whether under the Houthi's control or Saudi Arabia. The same as the Strait of Hormuz. If you believe in the gloating, no proof is necessary. The proof lies with shipowners and insurers.
Saudi Arabia had fought a long, drawn-out war against the Houthis before, supported by the USA. Did the Saudi's win that conflict? Now that the peace deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia are fracturing, it is going to be back to the bad-old-days. One side needs the Bab Al-Mandab staying open for its oil exports, the other side cares two hoots about closing the Bab Al-Mandab. Who is more desperate is not difficult to see. The Houthis will just sit around and wait, nothing to lose and no oil exports to care about.
Anonymous
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The Saudi's are making the same fatal mistake as UAE, investing hundreds of billions trying to outdo Dubai, with its massive Noem construction projects and the highest building in the world - the 'Jeddah Tower' caught in limbo.
Dubai's Burj Kalifah is now facing massive problems with maintenance issues, just fifteen years after inauguration. The desert heat is destroying its glass cladding that poses enormous problems with replacements. I do not have to highlight all the other technical issues regarding water, sewage disposal and external cleaning which are well articulated elsewhere.
Saudi Arabia is caught between a rock and a hard place, trying to fund all the construction costs, with many projects now abandoned. When they look at what is happening with Dubai, they knew the kind of problems they are going to face. No longer would filthy rich investors be tempted to take up units in the Jeddah Tower after seeing what the Burj Kalifah is going through.
Both countries face the same problem - desert heat that destroys infrastructures. Nature is taking back what Dubai took from it by dredging sand loaded with salt as foundations for its Palm Jebel Ali and Palm Jumeirah beach homes. Another such project had been scrapped, leaving sand dunes basking in the hot sun and the sea claiming back its sand. Nature has all the time in the world to do its job or reclaiming what belongs to it.
Saudi Arabia needs desperate money trying to export its oil. The Strait of Hormuz already dampened its hope of generating more revenue to fund its development, thinking that the Red Sea gives it a alternative lifeline. Now, that possibility is being given a rude awakening by the Houthis. So, now the Saudis are claiming they have control of the Bab Al-Mandab. The question is how are ships going to avoid being accosted by the Houthis? Will shipowners and insurers just ignore the risks? We have gone through the Strait of Hormuz issues, and it is clear that gloating does not necessarily mean the problem is solved.
The Arab states that depend on oil and everything are in serious trouble but not complaining because their fate was brought upon them by their American rulers, oops, their protectors, and still paying protection money. And still got time to fight among themselves.
What a pathetic joke.
Without Iran and the Houthis they will be ruled by the Americans and Israelis forever...and think they are free.
That is how pathetic some countries leaders are. Fighting among themselves for the benefit of the rogue nation.
But I think cannot blame them as they are held by the testicles by the USA, either in military measures or economic measures like getting stuck in investing in the USA and the West. They saw what the USA and Europeans did to Russia, so they are always asking - Who is next - and it is better to just toe the line.
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