The Iran-backed Houthi movement launched a blockade of Saudi ports last week. According to al-Zouba, the movement wants to do the same thing that Iran did in the Strait of Hormuz.
They believe they will gain control of the Red Sea, he says.
Much of Saudi Arabia's oil exports have had to be routed via the Bab al-Mandab Strait, or "Gate of Tears," off the coast of Yemen, after traffic through the Strait of Hormuz was largely halted due to the war in Iran.
On Monday, the Houthi movement announced that it had carried out drone attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure. The Saudi government responded by saying that the country “reserves the right to respond” to the attacks.
In Yemen, the internationally recognized, and above all Saudi-backed, government is worried about an escalation both nationally and in the region.
