Oil Routes Threatened as Middle East Conflict Expands

Six months after attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran, conflict in the Middle East is continuing to grow. The fighting is affecting important routes used to move oil and gas around the world.

Iran has limited traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that carried about 20% of the world’s oil and gas before the war. Oil producers tried using other routes, including the Red Sea and Saudi Arabia’s East-West Crude Oil Pipeline.

Now those alternatives are under pressure too. A temporary U.S.-Iran peace deal ended last month, and attacks on ships have increased. The U.S. has moved some ships through the Strait of Hormuz, but much less oil is traveling through it than before.

In Yemen, the Iran-backed Houthi rebel group has been fighting Saudi Arabia and Yemen government forces. The Houthis attacked two Saudi oil tankers after Saudi Arabia struck an airport in Yemen’s capital in July. Both sides have since used drones and missiles.

In early September, the Houthis gained control of the port city of Mocha and, by last Friday, Yemen’s entire Red Sea coast, including an important island. This control could allow them to make Red Sea shipping more difficult.

Iran-backed militants in Iraq also launched drones at Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline last Thursday and Friday. Saudi Arabia shut down the pipeline after it was damaged.

The fighting has forced tens of thousands of people in Yemen from their homes. Leaders are watching to see how Saudi Arabia responds and whether the conflict spreads further.