Strait of Hormuz
Yemen’s Houthis are bringing their war to Saudi Arabia – and reframing the narrative of being an Iranian proxy
A deadly bombing at Riyadh’s international airport is the latest in a tit-for-tat retaliation campaign the Houthis have ramped up for weeks.
The oil market that sets today’s gas prices was invented in western Pennsylvania
A historian traces how Oil City brokers, then John D. Rockefeller, then futures exchanges decided what the world pays for crude – and why no one entity does today.
The Mecca alliance meets the Red Sea – Saudi Arabia’s new defense pact faces its first major test
The pact with Turkey and Pakistan has evolved quickly from a vague political commitment. Riyadh hopes it will help it navigate a thorny Middle East crisis.
Why fuel prices may go higher still
Seven months into the US conflict with Iran, with no clear end in sight, the global oil market has now largely exhausted the safety measures that exist to keep a lid on petroleum prices.
Rapid Houthi advances in Yemen pose massive strategic risks for Saudi Arabia in the Gulf
The resumption of fighting, paired with the ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz, complicates regional strategy and energy policy for the Gulf powerhouse.
Houthi advance boosts Iran’s leverage over the US and Saudi Arabia – but may cost rebel group its legitimacy back in Yemen
Seizure of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait complicates a widening conflict in the Persian Gulf. It also risks reigniting Yemen’s civil war.
A new Houthi front and expanded Iranian attacks risk sinking Gulf nations’ choke‑point workaround and widening shipping risks
The ongoing war in Iran has created an expanding zone of risk for shipping, including for Saudi Arabia’s strategy of redirecting oil exports away from Hormuz.
How trains can transform Persian Gulf politics and global security
Once completed, the 2,177-kilometer GCC Railway will connect six Gulf kingdoms and provide alternative routes to Europe and Asia.
Trump’s US‑Iran ceasefire deal is a costly return to prewar conditions – and resolving nuclear questions will run into the ‘indivisibility problem’
Iran has emerged with its uranium enrichment knowledge intact, its stockpile buried and fresh reason to believe that only a nuclear weapon would have deterred the US-Israel attack.
In Iran war’s shadow, Israel’s renewed Lebanon campaign risks repeating failed lessons – and occupations – of the past
Unable to defeat Iran, Israel shifts its focus to Lebanon, fearing U.S. negotiations with Tehran could limit operations against Hezbollah.