Yemen crisis: Saudi blocus on Bab El-Mandab strait and Egyptian vessels en route to Yemen
 
Yemen crisis: Saudi blocus on Bab El-Mandab strait and Egyptian vessels en route to Yemen
The Saudi-led Decisive Storm coalition has imposed a naval blockade on Bab El-Mandab strait which connects the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean, sources told Ahram Online. The Saudi navy's western fleet has also secured Yemen's main ports including Aden and Midi. In the same time, four Egyptian naval vessels have crossed the Suez Canal en route to Yemen to secure the Gulf of Aden.
 
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Naval Defense Industry News - Yemen
 
 
 
Yemen crisis: Saudi blocus on Bab El-Mandab strait and Egyptian vessels en route to Yemen
 
The Saudi-led Decisive Storm coalition has imposed a naval blockade on Bab El-Mandab strait which connects the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean, sources told Ahram Online. The Saudi navy's western fleet has also secured Yemen's main ports including Aden and Midi. In the same time, four Egyptian naval vessels have crossed the Suez Canal en route to Yemen to secure the Gulf of Aden.
     
Yemen crisis: Saudi blocus on Bab El-Mandab strait and Egyptian vessels en route to Yemen
Al Riyadh-class frigates are the most powerful ships of The Royal Saudi Navy
     

Saudi Arabia launched intense airstrikes on neighboring Yemen on Thursday, March 26, targeting key sites including the country’s main airport, as part of a bold Arab-led offensive to weaken powerful Shiite rebels who have put the country’s president on the run.

The attacks plunged Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies into the deepening crisis in Yemen after a rebel advance forced the country’s Western-backed president to flee and left the Shiite insurgents, known as Houthis, on the brink of claiming control of the country’s two largest cities.

The Saudi-led campaign also reflects a balance-of-power showdown with Shiite power Iran, which is believed to back the Houthi rebels and could gain new footholds on the Sunni-dominated Arabian peninsula.

Saudi Arabia has mobilized a major force — with direct or political support of other Sunni states — that suggested it was prepared for a sustained fight that could mirror the U.S.-led attacks against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

The Red Sea is one of the world's most strategic water arteries, connecting Europe to the Persian Gulf and East Asia. To the south, Bab El-Mandab strait connects the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean, while, to the north, Egypt’s Suez Canal provides passage to the Mediterranean Sea. States which secure the Red Sea for international navigation include Egypt, Sudan, Jordan, Yemen, Djibouti and Saudi Arabia.

Pakistan and Egypt announced their participation in the ongoing Saudi-led military campaign against with air and naval forces, Al Arabiya News Channel reported.

Al Arabiya said Egypt, Pakistan and Sudan have also expressed their readiness to contribute ground troops in the campaign.

Four Egyptian warships entered the Suez Canal on Thursday en route to the Gulf of Aden, Reuters news agency reported citing canal officials said.The officials said the ships will take part in operations “to secure” the strategic waters that control southern access to the Suez Canal.
     
Yemen crisis: Saudi blocus on Bab El-Mandab strait and Egyptian vessels en route to YemenAlmost 10 countries could have joined the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen
     
The UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and Jordan have also deployed fighter jets to join the Saudi air force in the ongoing air campaign against Yemen’s Houthi rebels, Al Arabiya News Chanel reported.The UAE has deployed 30 fighter jets, Bahrain 15, Kuwait 15, Qatar 10 and Jordan 6 warplanes, according to the news channel.