Yemen Strikes Ignite Oil as Prices Surge Over 2%

12 Jan 2024 , 09:23 AM

As the United States and Britain launched strikes against Houthi military targets in Yemen in retaliation for attacks by the Iran-backed group on ships in the Red Sea beginning late last year, oil prices increased by more than 2% on Friday.

Brent crude prices were up $1.81, or 2.3%, at $79.22 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were trading $1.80, or 2.5% higher, at $73.82.

One of the most striking examples of the Israel-Hamas conflict’s expansion in the Middle East since it broke out in October is the combination of American and British strikes. Explosions have been confirmed by witnesses across Yemen.

‘Targeted strikes’ are a strong statement that the US and its allies would not accept attacks on US people or ‘allow hostile actors to imperil freedom of navigation,’ according to US President Joe Biden.

He added that the operation has the support of Australia, Bahrain, Canada, and the Netherlands.

Approximately 15% of all shipping traffic worldwide travels via the crucial route connecting Europe and Asia, which has been hampered by the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.

In an effort to aid the terrorist Palestinian organization Hamas in its conflict with Israel, the Houthis have been attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea since October.

The massive shipping company Maersk informed clients on Thursday that it will be rerouting all of its ships out of the Red Sea for the foreseeable future and warned them of more interruptions.

The attacks spearheaded by the United States also come soon after Iran seized a tanker carrying Iraqi crude that was headed for Turkey on Thursday. This action was taken in revenge for the United States’ seizure of the same vessel and its cargo last year. The seizure has been denounced by the White House.

The Bab al-Mandab Strait, which is southwest of the Arabian Peninsula, has been the focus of the Houthi attacks. The location of Iran’s seizure was nearer to Oman and Iran’s shared Strait of Hormuz.

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