Houthi rebel offensive fuels fears of escalation in the Middle East and Europe

By Jonathan Este, Senior International Affairs Editor, Associate Editor, The Conversation

In this extraordinary and deeply worrying year for international security, some weeks nevertheless stand out as particularly momentous.

Events in Yemen now threaten to escalate the war between the US, Israel and Iran into a regional conflagration. Houthi rebels have captured strategically important positions on the Red Sea coast that will give them the potential to shut down Saudi Arabia’s ability to export oil. And we’ve heard unverified claims from Saudi Arabia it shot down a Houthi drone that was targeting the holy city of Mecca, constituting a “red line” in that years-long conflict.

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