As Houthis grab Bab al-Mandeb, US appears willing to watch from sidelines

United States officials met Houthi representatives at the US embassy in the Omani capital, Muscat, over the weekend after the Iran-aligned movement seized thousands of square kilometres of territory in just a few days.With strategically important islands and large stretches of Yemen’s Red Sea coast now under Houthi control, the group has tightened its grip on the Bab al-Mandeb Strait – a crucial chokepoint for global shipping and energy supplies.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Bomb attack at Pakistan mosque kills at least 16 people, injures 56list 2 of 4Ukraine fires drone barrage as Russia launches electionslist 3 of 4Israel is killing the people who could end its warslist 4 of 4‘My children did not attack Iran’: 2bn South Asians suffer from distant warend of listDuring the talks, the Houthis assured US officials that they had no intention of attacking US shipping in the Red Sea, saying their restrictions would apply only to vessels linked to Saudi Arabia.But that would still leave two of the world’s most important shipping routes facing serious disruption, with traffic through the Strait of Hormuz restricted for the past six months. Any further disruption could driv...