A senior Saudi official, speaking anonymously to Reuters late on Thursday, said intelligence gathered by Saudi Arabia, the United States and other countries in the region indicated that civilian and economic sites could be targeted.
The potential targets include energy infrastructure, ports and airports.
Saudi Arabia had detected the movement of drones and missiles, according to the official, suggesting preparations for attacks from Iraq to the north and Yemen to the south.
âThe agreement is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against any act of aggressionâ and stipulates that an armed attack against any of the three countries âwould be regarded as an attack on allâ, according to a joint statement cited by Reuters.
The pact brings together NATO member Turkiye, which has the allianceâs second-largest military, nuclear-armed Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, one of the Gulfâs most powerful states and the worldâs leading oil exporters.
On August 1, 2026, a merchant vessel successfully navigated the Red Sea under the escort of the Italian frigate Bergamini, according to a statement from the European Unionâs naval mission ASPIDES. The protective operation highlights ongoing maritime security efforts in a region currently experiencing significant geopolitical tensions.
Military spokesperson says maritime blockade has forced Saudi tankers to avoid Red Sea route
Fourteen countries have backed a Saudi proposal to establish a multinational âMaritime Defense Alliance,â aimed at protecting international shipping routes and global trade, Saudi Arabiaâs Ministry of Defense said in a statement Thursday.
The countries are Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Sudan, Djibouti and Somalia.
The ministry said military chiefs and other representatives from 43 countries attended a meeting on the initiative, either in person or by video link. A European Union delegation also took part.
While the new blockade has disrupted shipping in the region, Ansar Allah hasnât announced a blanket ban on shipping through the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. Some Chinese ships loaded with Saudi crude have also been able to pass through the strait, and Reuters reported that Beijing had cleared each passage with Sanaa.
But as the US-Iran war and conflict across the region are escalating again, the chances of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait being completely closed are rising. The Al-Monitor report, which cited two diplomatic sources and an unnamed US official, said that Riyadh has invited around 50 nations to join the Red Sea coalition, but that US support was seen as vital for the initiative to take off, and it was unclear at this point if Washington would participate.
Der Bundestag hat am Donnerstag, 16. Oktober 2025, den Bundeswehreinsatz im Roten Meer um ein Jahr verlĂ€ngert. Dazu lag ein Antrag der Bundesregierung fĂŒr die fortgesetzte Beteiligung der Bundeswehr an der EU-gefĂŒhrten Operation Eunavfor Aspides zur Abwehr von Angriffen der Huthi-Milizen auf die Schifffahrt im Roten Meer vor (21/1372(Dokument, öffnet ein neues Fenster)). In namentlicher Abstimmung wurde der Antrag auf Empfehlung des AuswĂ€rtigen Ausschusses mit 435 Ja-Stimmen bei 69 Gegenstimmen und 77 Enthaltungen angenommen.
âDer Zustimmungsfall wird dann relevant, wenn der Bundestag einzelne Regelungen in Kraft setzen will, die im Spannungsfall gelten wĂŒrden, aber den Spannungsfall insgesamt noch nicht ausrufen willâ, sagt Hegemann. FĂŒr diese einzelnen Regeln reicht dann wie bei regulĂ€ren Gesetzen grundsĂ€tzlich eine einfache Mehrheit im Parlament.
Das geplante BND-Gesetz formuliert fĂŒr alle drei FĂ€lle Regeln. Vor allem aber Ă€ndert es den Mechanismus, wie der Zustimmungsfall fĂŒr das BND-Gesetz ausgelöst werden kann. Das soll sich am Zustimmungsfall aus dem Grundgesetz âorientierenâ, aber umgeht dabei das Plenum des Bundestags.
An die Stelle eines regulĂ€ren parlamentarischen Verfahrens soll nĂ€mlich ein Vorschlag der Bundesregierung treten, dem das Parlamentarische Kontrollgremium zustimmen mĂŒsste. Dann könnten einzelne oder alle Regelungen des Gesetzes zum Spannungs- und Verteidigungsfall âfreigeschaltetâ werden. Dass der Bundestag als Ganzes dabei auĂen vor bliebe, hat noch einen weiteren Effekt: âEine Veröffentlichung ist nicht vorgesehen.
Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that its coalition forces struck Houthi militia in Yemen after the Iran-backed group claimed to have attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea earlier in the week.
Air defenses in Saudi Arabia reportedly intercepted two ballistic missiles from Yemen.
The latest salvos appeared to indicate an escalation in fighting in a second front in the Iran war.
Der Angriffskrieg Israels und der USA gegen den Iran breitete sich in der Nacht endgĂŒltig auf das Rote Meer aus. Noch sind dort nur Schiffe von und zu sowie aus Saudi-Arabien betroffen, als Reaktion des Jemens auf die Blockade und die letzte Bombardierung des Flughafens von Sanaa. Aber Beobachter befĂŒrchten, dass bald auch Schiffe der LĂ€nder betroffen sein werden, welche den Krieg gegen den Iran, Libanon und PalĂ€stina unterstĂŒtzen. Die Chronologie des Tages beginnt mit den Ereignissen der Nacht.
„I am considering a massive attack. Bigger than ever before. I am close to making a decision. We are all set for it,“ Mr. Trump told Axios, adding that he believed Iran‘s leaders „want to negotiate,“ but aren‘t yet ready to make a deal.
„They haven‘t received enough pain yet,“ he told the outlet.
U.S. forces carried out a 12th consecutive night of strikes across Iran on Wednesday, and Mr. Trump warned in a social media post Thursday that the Islamic Republic and its Houthi allies would both face „major military punishment“ if the Yemeni rebels repeat their attacks from earlier this week on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.
(10 hours ago)
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said its armed forces targeted two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, claiming the vessels had violated a ban imposed by the group.
Saudi Arabia‘s state media later confirmed that one of its vessels was struck and the bow of the ship caught fire, with a source adding that all crew members onboard Encelia were safe.
Born into poverty and with little opportunity at home, Hiwot Mehari took the dangerous smuggling route out of Ethiopia and across the Red Sea to Yemen, from where he hoped to reach Saudi Arabia.
After two years in the deadly border region between Yemen and Saudi Arabia known as Rago, Mehari was caught by border security men and thrown into prison.
On 28 April 2025, he became one of dozens of Ethiopians killed in a US air strike on a migrant detention in Saada, northwest Yemen.
The next day, at noon, Mehariâs parents received the news at home from a neighbour in the Tsirae district of war-ravaged Tigray.
President Trump on Tuesday suggested he could restart a bombing campaign in Yemen in response to the Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, enforcing a blockade on the Red Sea.
Trumpâs comments came after Ansar Allah announced a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia, which came a week after the Saudis bombed Yemenâs Sanaa airport to prevent the landing of a plane carrying a Yemeni delegation from Iran to enforce its long-standing blockade on the country that was eased under a 2022 ceasefire deal but never fully lifted.
Yemenâs Iran-backed Houthi rebels announced a maritime embargo of their foe Saudi Arabia after the two sides traded fire last week for the first time in years.
The rebels âdeclare a maritime embargo against the criminal Saudi enemy, based on the equation of âan eye for an eye,â effective immediately upon the issuance of this statementâ, military spokesman Yahya Saree said
(March 10, 2026)
For Russia, which remains one of the worldâs largest oil exporters despite Western sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine, the price rally directly translates into stronger state revenues.
Henning Gloystein, managing director for energy and resources at Eurasia Group, said Russia has âalready hugely benefitedâ from the crisis after Washington granted India a temporary waiver allowing it to continue purchasing Russian crude.
(March 23, 2026)
The war in Iran is spiking global oil prices, and Russian President Vladimir Putin couldnât be happier.
The war has bottled up one-fifth of the worldâs oil, putting a premium on the remaining supply, including Russian barrels.
Iranian officials have asked Yemenâs Houthis to block the Red Sea if the U.S. carries out strikes on Tehranâs energy sites, according to Reuters.
Two senior Iranian sources and a regional source familiar with the matter reportedly told the outlet that the Houthis had been informed of the request, which was discussed within the Islamic Republicâs leadership.
(July 15, 2026)
The U.S. State Department is aware of reports that President Donald Trump has given Saudi Arabia the green light to launch military action against Yemenâs Iran-backed Houthi movement following attacks on the kingdom, a department spokesperson told MBN in a statement.
(July 14, 2026)
The country‘s size relative to other much smaller Gulf states meant it fared better during the war, continuing to export oil via a pipeline from the east to its west coast on the Red Sea, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.
A wider conflict with the Houthis, who have in the past targeted Red Sea shipping, could challenge that.
The Saudi government‘s communication office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The secret deployment to Azerbaijan, reported by CNN for the first time, was one of several military positions Israel maintained across the Middle East that gave its military unprecedented reach, highlighting the role Iranâs neighbors played â some with permission, some likely without â in facilitating operations against Tehran and becoming entangled in the conflict.
The locations in Azerbaijan were among numerous covert military sites and bases in multiple countries, the sources told CNN, including in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, and Somaliland. The forces, initially planned as potential rescue teams in the event of an emergency, expanded in scope to become military and intelligence gathering positions.
Tasnim added that Tehran and allied militant groups in the region have placed on their agenda the âcomplete closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the activation of other fronts,â including the Bab el-Mandeb strait at the southern end of the Red Sea, where Yemenâs Iran-backed Houthi rebels have previously launched attacks on passing vessels.
Saudi Arabia âhas exported 4.355 million barrels per day of crude so âfar â in March, data from analytics firm Kpler showed, down from 7.108 million bpd in February.
The producer is trying to boost crude exports via âYanbu to âoffset the â Strait of Hormuz disruption, with loadings seen rising to record volumes in âMarch. China‘s top refiner Sinopec (600028.SS), opens new tab is âset â to load about 24 million barrels of Saudi crude from Yanbu in March.
(Dezember 11, 2008)
Wissen Sie, wenn Sie hier schon immer vorher alles lesen können was unsere Berliner Chunta und ihre Chefs in Washington ausbaldowern, dann jammern Sie jetzt wenigstens nicht rum wenn wir Ihnen das ausfĂŒhrlich erlĂ€utern.
(…)
Kapitel III: Der erste Irakkrieg und der Zerfall Somalias
Bereits wÀhrend des Zusammenbruchs der Sowjetunion wurde der somalische Diktator Siad Barre und Statthalter der USA am Horn von Afrika aus Washington plötzlich fallen gelassen.
Ăber die GrĂŒnde heisst es da im dt-sprachigen Wikipedia-Eintrag
âals Menschenrechtsverletzungen seines Regimes umfangreicher und offensichtlicher wurden und er nach dem Ende des Kalten Krieges seine Bedeutung als BĂŒndnispartner verloren hatteâ
âSeine Bedeutung als BĂŒndnispartner verlorenâ. Am Horn von Afrika. In dem Augenblick, als der Truppenaufmarsch des US-MilitĂ€rs in der Region fĂŒr den ersten Irakkrieg losging?
Denn nachdem der irakische Diktator Saddam Hussein am 2.August 1990 urplötzlich in Kuwait einmarschiert war, begann unmittelbar darauf bereits ein bis dato unvorstellbarer MilitĂ€raufmarsch der USA in der arabischen Welt, angeblich fĂŒr eine âinsgesamt defensiveâ MilitĂ€raktion um den Irak am Eindringen nach Saudi-Arabien zu hindern.
Am frĂŒhen Morgen des 17. Januar 1991 beginnen die Alliierten den ersten Irakkrieg mit einem massiven Luftschlag.
Am 26.Januar 1991 muss der durch die USA fallengelassene Diktator Somalias Siad Barre aus der Hauptstadt Mogadishu fliehen.
Am 12. April 1991 tritt der âWaffenstillstandâ zwischen den US-gefĂŒhrten KoalitionsstreitkrĂ€ften und dem irakischen Diktator Saddam Hussein in Kraft, welcher bekanntermassen jahrzehntelang zuvor als treuer CIA-Agent gedient hatte. Roger Morris umschrieb es spĂ€ter wĂ€hrend des zweiten Irakkrieges am 14.MĂ€rz 2003 in der New York Times folgendermassen:âErinnert Euch: Saddam war unser Mannâ.
Hussein war bereits 1968 unter US-President Lyndon B.Johnson mit Hilfe der CIA im Irak an die Macht geputscht worden.
Am 28. Mai 1991 verkĂŒndete dann das Pentagon, dass 464.000 US-Soldaten (welche die plötzlich abgebrochene Invasion des Irak durchgefĂŒhrt hatten) inzwischen die âRegion am Persischen Golfâ verlassen hĂ€tten. 76.000 Soldaten blieben dort allerdings stationiert.
US-Truppen waren also zu Zehntausenden in einer Region, die noch zwei Jahre zuvor fĂŒr sie absolut tabu gewesen war. Was passierte nun?
PĂŒntklich zum Ende des Irakkrieges Nr.1 zerfiel der Staat Somalia.
Kapital IV: Vom Golf nach Somalia
Am 18.Mai 1991, also zehn Tage vor VerkĂŒndung des offiziellen Waffenstillstands im Irak, verkĂŒndet Somaliland seine UnabhĂ€ngigkeit.
Es grenzt im Norden direkt an die französische KĂŒstenkolonie Djibouti (âDschibutiâ), dem traditionell wichtigsten MilitĂ€rstĂŒtzpunkt fĂŒr âwestlicheâ Flotten und MilitĂ€rs in der Region, in welchem US-Spezialeinheiten und Geheimdienste der NATO-Staaten ein und aus gehen.
WÀhrend in Somaliland seitdem relative Ruhe herrscht, bricht im restlichen Somalia 1991 das Chaos aus. Rivalisierende Warlords stecken ihre Claims ab und kÀmpfen um die Macht.
Gleichzeitig spielt sich im bis zum Ende der Sowjetunion aus Moskau unterstĂŒtzten Ăthiopien eine interessante Paralellentwicklung ab….
âTheyâre frequent and the logistics are transferred immediately to another aircraft that is on standby and is destined for the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan through the neighbouring countries,â said Abdullahi, a senior Puntland Maritime Police Force (PMPF) commander at Bosaso Airport, who spoke to Middle East Eye using a different name for security reasons.
According to flight tracking data, satellite imagery, multiple local sources, and US and regional diplomats, the origin of these planes and their cargo is clear: the United Arab Emirates.
(…)
As MEE reported recently, Bosaso is connected to a ring of bases built and expanded by the UAE across the Gulf of Aden and Red Sea. The bases, on the islands of Mayun, Abd al-Kuri, Samhah; at the Somaliland port of Berbera and the Yemeni port of Mocha, are all on territory nominally controlled not by the UAE but its allies or clients.
In a statement issued today by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Egypt expressed hope that this agreement would positively impact freedomn of navigation in the Red Sea.
In a statement on Tuesday, the ministry praised the diplomatic efforts of the brotherly Sultanate of Oman, which played a key role in mediating the agreement. The ministry emphasised that the deal marks a significant move toward de-escalating conflict in the region
His Excellency Jassim Mohammed Al-Budaiwi, Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), said that the efforts made by the Sultanate of Oman in mediating between the United States and the relevant authorities in the Republic of Yemen, which led to a ceasefire agreement between the two sides, embody the constructive and effective role played by Oman in supporting regional security and stability.
(May 6, 2025)
Under this agreement, neither party will target the other, including American vessels, in the Red Sea and the Bab Al-Mandab Strait, thereby safeguarding freedom of navigation and ensuring the unimpeded flow of international commercial shipping.
The Sultanate of Oman extends its appreciation to both parties for their constructive approach, which has yielded this positive outcome.
Tue, 22 Apr 2025 22:44:32 +0300]
Hodeida – Saba:
A US-led aggression targeted Al Hodeida Governorate this evening with a series of airstrikes.
According to Al Jazeera, US warplanes carried out a wide range of airstrikes on different parts of Yemen from Monday night until the early hours of Tuesday morning.
(April 21, 2025)
An American airstrike hit a densely populated area of the Yemeni capital on Sunday, killing 12 people and injuring 30, according to the health ministry of the Houthi-led government.
Two witnesses who live in the capital, Sana, said that the attack struck a neighborhood near the Old City, a densely populated Unesco world heritage site that is filled with ancient towers.
On Thursday night, the US bombed the Ras Isa fuel port in Yemenâs Red Sea province of Hodeidah, targeting the facility with two attacks that killed dozens of civilian workers and paramedics.
According to Yemenâs Health Ministry, at least 74 people, including at least five paramedics, were killed, and 171 were wounded. The paramedics were hit by a second US attack on the facility that came after rescue workers had already arrived at the scene to help victims of the first strikes (watch graphic footage of the aftermath of the attack here).
âToday, US forces took action to eliminate this source of fuel for the Iran-backed Houthi terrorists,â CENTCOM said on Thursday in a post on social media. âThe objective of these strikes was to degrade the economic source of power of the Houthis,â it said.
Al Jazeera correspondent Mohammed al-Attab, reporting from Yemenâs capital Sanaa, said the US air strikes hit several different areas, but were most concentrated around the port facility.
âThe first four air raids were waged while the people were working,â he said. The air raids took employees by surprise, he said, including truck drivers who were on the scene at the time.
An intense series of suspected U.S. airstrikes hit sites across Yemen held by the Houthi rebels into Thursday morning, with at least one person reportedly being killed in the capital, Sanaa.