Iran has asked Yemen’s Houthi movement to prepare to close the Red Sea oil route if the United States attacks Iran’s power infrastructure, the global media outlet reported on Thursday.
According to two senior Iranian sources and a regional source familiar with the matter, Iranian leaders discussed the plan and passed the message to their Houthi allies. The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Tehran recently informed the Houthis of the request. However, they did not say how Iran delivered the message or whether it came after US President Donald Trump warned on Tuesday that the US could target Iran’s power infrastructure.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry and a Houthi spokesperson did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
A source close to the Houthis said the group has already deployed missiles and drones near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in Yemen and is waiting for orders to begin attacks on shipping.
If the Houthis block the Red Sea route, it could worsen the global energy crisis. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is one of the world’s key oil shipping routes. With the Strait of Hormuz already closed, any disruption in the Red Sea would affect the Middle East’s two main oil export routes at the same time.
The source also said officials from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), who are already in Yemen, will decide when to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Also Read, Pakistan urges US, Iran to resume talks: FO
Earlier, Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said that Pakistan will encourage the United States (US) and Iran to end the violence and resume peace talks, the private media outlet reported on Thursday.
“While the implementation of the MoU is facing challenges, Pakistan will continue to encourage all sides to end violence and resume technical-level talks in accordance with the MoU,” Andrabi said while speaking to journalists in Islamabad.
