Up to 169 killed as Houthis advance on Red Sea heights, threatening global shipping

Along Yemen's Red Sea coast, a three-week Houthi offensive has shattered a fragile ceasefire and redrawn the boundaries of an eight-year war, placing one of the world's most critical maritime chokepoints under the command of an Iranian-aligned force. The seizure of the Bab al-Mandab strait — through which a tenth of global maritime cargo passes — arrives as Iran has already closed the Strait of Hormuz, compressing the arteries of global commerce in ways that reach far beyond the Arabian Peninsula. With 169 dead in three days, over 100,000 displaced, and Saudi Arabia appealing to Washington for