02 August 2018•Update: 02 August 2018
JERUSALEM
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday warned Iran that any attempt to block the Bab al-Mandab Strait would face the wrath of an “international coalition”.
The Bab al-Mandab links the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea via the Gulf of Aden and Red Sea.
Netanyahu issued the threat following recent Iranian threats to close the strategic waterway in retaliation for U.S. economic sanctions on Tehran.
“Early this week, we saw a sharp clash with Iranian proxies who tried to obstruct navigation through the strait near the entrance of the Red Sea,” Netanyahu said while addressing naval cadets at a graduation ceremony Haifa.
“If Iran tries to block the Bab al-Mandab, I’m convinced it will find itself facing a determined international coalition tasked with preventing this,” he added.
Netanyahu went on to stress the waterway’s strategic importance to Israel.
“The sea provides many opportunities,” he said. “Above all, it allows the small state of Israel to extend its reach by deploying our vessels… across a vast area,” he asserted.
Last week, Saudi Arabia suspended crude oil transfers through the Bab al-Mandab after two of its oil tankers were allegedly attacked by Iranian-backed rebels off Yemen’s coast.
“Saudi Arabia is temporarily halting all oil shipments through the Bab al-Mandab until the situation becomes clearer and maritime transit through the strait is secure,” Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said at the time.
One day later, Qassem Soleimani, head of Iran’s elite Quds Force, said the Red Sea was “no longer safe” for U.S. naval forces.
An estimated 7 percent of all international maritime traffic transits through the Bab al-Mandab each year.
