Threat to oil tankers in Middle East worst since start of Iran war, analysts say

For much of the war, some ships carrying oil from Saudi Arabia had instead passed through an alternative shipping lane in the Red Sea, between the kingdom and west Africa.But a recent spate of attacks by Yemen's Houthi fighters on Saudi tankers using the alternative waterway has further heightened the risks.The Iranian-backed Houthi militia announced what it called a blockade on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea ports on 20 July and the UK Maritime Trade Operations ⁠agency has reported several attacks on ships in the past week."Not only is the ongoing situation in the Strait of Hormuz constraining oil flows, but now a big factor that was helping to balance the market is now also under threat. It's a problem stacked on top of a problem," Wright said.Tim Wilkins, the managing director of Intertanko, a trade body representing tanker owners, said the industry was "facing a broadening, deteriorating, and increasingly complex security situation"."We now have the high-risk area going up to Saudi Arabian waters and extending into parts of the Red Sea. So that's having another impact on the market, on freedom of navigation as well."The number of commodity vessels that passed through the Bab el-Mandeb strait was 28 on Saturday and six of them had their transponders turned off, according to Kpler data, indicating that they were trying to avoid detection.