However, the focus has now shifted to Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman/Arabian Sea. They have greatly increased Iran’s leverage in Hormuz by targeting two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea last Friday. The Saudis had resurrected an old pipeline connecting its oil fields in the east to its port on the Red Sea with shipments proceeding further to the Asia-Pacific. The Houthis have now effectively closed the Bab el-Mandab Strait – the exit/entry to the Red Sea. The rising tension in the Red Sea has threatened to further restrict global shipping, because the militants have closed a vital shipping chokepoint.