Yemen’s Houthis now command Perim Island and both shores of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. This explosive geography triggers immediate economic shockwaves: following the fall of Mocha, Saudi Red Sea crude exports could plunge by 95% under Abdul-Malik al Houthi’s embargoes. No other node in Iran’s “Axis of Resistance” has successfully seized a global chokepoint. By controlling both Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb, Tehran holds a vice on Asia-Europe energy. This reality will inevitably force Washington to strike the Houthis, triggering an Iranian reprisal that draws Israel into a decisive, multitheater fray.
The definitive blueprint for this conflict is April 18, 1988. When an Iranian mine struck the USS Samuel B. Roberts, Washington retaliated immediately with “Operation Praying Mantis,” crushing half of Iran’s navy. Modern strategists obsess over “Operation Desert Storm” while forgetting the last time America actually fought Tehran over sea lanes. Hence, ceding regional maritime supremacy to Iran and its proxies repeats that precise historical blunder.
