As Iran and the United States fight over control of the Strait of Hormuz, a major artery carrying oil to the world from Saudi Arabia has been compromised. Drones have struck the East-West Pipeline, causing extensive damage that could take weeks to recover from. And now, one of two routes out of the Red Sea is also under threat, as Iran-backed Houthi forces advance toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
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TRANSCRIPT:
Saudi Arabia's East-West Pipeline was built for precisely this kind of crisis.
As the US-Iran war restricted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, crude was being pumped west across the kingdom to the Red Sea.
Then came the drone attack in recent days.
It damaged the pipeline and a major pumping facility, largely shutting down a route officials say could take three to five weeks to fully repair.
But even when the oil begins flowing again, tankers heading south to the Indian Ocean will need to pass through Bab el-Mandeb, where Iran-backed Houthi forces are advancing, seizing strategic territory, including Perim Island at the entrance to the strait.
With Hormuz severely restricted, the Saudi pipeline damaged and the Red Sea route through Bab-el-Mandab under threat, US Vice President JD Vance says Washington is doing all it can - including talking directly to the Houthis.
REPORTER: "Are you concerned at all about the Houthi seizure of Perim Island in the Red Sea, and what is the U.S. going to respond to that?"
VANCE: "You know, concerned certainly. It's something that we're keeping pretty close tabs on. We've been in constant contact with the Emiratis, the Saudis, and others who are affected in the region. So it's something the United States administration is very much on top of. We've also been engaged in direct conversations with the Houthis themselves. So we actually feel like we are on top of the situation. It's a very fluid and dynamic thing, but we're going to keep on monitoring it and making sure that Americans' best interests are represented."
The Houthi offensive is not only threatening global shipping.
It is also reigniting Yemen’s civil war - a UN-brokered truce between the Houthis and the internationally recognised government formally expired in October 2022, but the main front lines had remained largely frozen ever since.
The International Organization for Migration's Yemen chief, Abdusattor Esoev, says the pace of displacement has surged since the beginning of September.
“Out of 85,818, only from September from the first till yesterday, the number was 82,164. So out of 85,000, 82,000 have been displaced in September alone. So, in other words, the displacement really intensified in the beginning of September, the peak come in the September. So let's say almost 95% of this number from September for the last two weeks.”
Many families are still moving, finding only temporary places to sleep.
And for some, emergency shelter means little more than a tent.
Yemen was already suffering one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with around 22 million people needing aid.
But the UN humanitarian response plan for 2026 is underfunded.
"The humanitarian response plan of Yemen for 2026 has been funded less than 20 percent... with more and more people being displaced and needing for support, we call upon the international communities, our donors, to provide more funding support."
And the Houthis are not Iran's only ally returning to the battlefield.
In southern Lebanon, Israel says it has taken operational control of the Ali Taher ridge near Nabatiyeh after weeks of fighting with Hezbollah, destroying underground positions and weapons stores.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the ridge had served as a Hezbollah command post and a base for attacks on northern Israel.
"Ali Taher was used not only to attack Kiryat Shmona and Metula but also as Hezbollah's forward command post in its plan to conquer the Galilee. Through the systematic work of our heroic fighters, we took out massive quantities of weapons from the bunkers built with substantial Iranian funding."
UN Deputy spokesperson, Farhan Haq, says UNIFIL forces on the ground in southern Lebanon have been recording multiple strikes.
"Our peacekeepers at the United Nations Interim Force continue to observe Israel Defense Forces (IDF) activities inside Lebanese territory, on land, in the air and at sea. ... Between Thursday and Sunday, peacekeepers observed IDF drones dropping jerrycans in the vicinity of Al-Mansouri. All subsequently detonated, with at least nine explosions triggered on Saturday alone. ... . UNIFIL (U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon) also continues to record numerous violations of Lebanese airspace by the IDF ... Between Thursday and Sunday, at least 32 airstrikes were recorded."
Mr Netanyahu says Israel's campaign against Hezbollah inside Lebanon will continue.
Further south, Gaza's ceasefire is also under strain.
Negotiations continue over the next phase of the US-backed peace plan, including Hamas's disarmament and further Israeli withdrawal.
But almost a year after the ceasefire took effect, the United Nations' deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq says civilians are still being killed, including children.
"Nine children were reportedly killed or died from their injuries over the previous week, including two sisters aged 6 and 12, and four other children between the ages of 3 and 14. The agency said that a pregnant mother and her unborn baby were also reportedly killed by gunfire. At least 13 children were reportedly injured."
In Gaza City, Zuhair al-Haisami says a family living nearby was killed when their home was hit in the early hours of the morning.
"They are innocent people, children sleeping in their home. They hit the house on them while they were in it. We pulled them out of the place where they were martyred, the children, the father, and the mother."
Yemen, Lebanon and Gaza each has their own history, actors and front lines.
But Iran, Israel and the United States are increasingly entangled within these conflicts.
And as respective governments measure territory and account for weapons and barrels of oil, civilians across the Middle East are counting the human cost of war.
