Oil pushed higher on Monday as markets assessed the situation in Yemen, where new reporting suggests the Houthis’ lightning offensive to capture strategic coastal real estate near the Bab al-Mandab Strait was aided by inside information.
The group, which controls mobile networks around the capital, Sanaa, used the cell phones of captured rivals to “listen in on calls between their opponents’ commanders, giving them insight into their plans,” according to The Wall Street Journal.
The Journal‘s sources also said the Houthis used the phones to “speak directly to rival fighters on the ground, urging them to surrender.” Brent was back near $110 to start the week on the prospect of de facto Iranian control over both Mideast maritime energy chokepoints.
As the figure shows, Brent’s gunning for a third consecutive weekly advance and a fifth in six.
Late last week, the Saudis closed the East-West pipeline responsible for moving crude across the Kingdom to the port of Yanbu on the Red Sea, which Riyadh uses to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. That line came under attack recently by drones flying from Iraq, where PMF militia, including the remnants of Kata’ib Hezbollah, still project on behalf of the IRGC, even as the Quds don’t exert the same level of operational control as they once did.
Details regarding the scope of damage to the Saudi line remain sparse, but sources who spoke to Reuters said Riyadh “will run out of oil stocks for exports” if it doesn’t restart the pipeline “within days.” The same sources suggested repairs could take weeks, although the conduit could be partially operational sooner. Up to 4% of global supply’s at risk.
Between the Houthis’ advance in Yemen and the Iraqi militias’ successful attacks on the Saudi pipeline, the Quds are serving notice that Qassem Soleimani’s “Axis of Resistance” isn’t completely defunct after all, even as Hezbollah “proper” (i.e., Lebanese Hezbollah) and Hamas will never be what they were prior to the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel.
I’d modestly (and gently) suggest it’s past time to offer the Houthis far more than they’ve been offered previously in peace deals aimed at establishing a unity government in Yemen. Critics would argue they’ve turned down “good” offers before, but given that they control the capital, the Red Sea coast and, now, the Bab al-Mandab, the “rebel” label’s an anachronistic misnomer.
Ironically, the best way to diminish Iranian leverage in Yemen might be to give the Houthis their “due,” because as I’ve emphasized repeatedly, they aren’t just puppets. They do have aspirations to govern in their own interests separate and distinct from Tehran’s, and they’re not really “terrorists” on most conventional definitions of the term.
The Journal article mentioned above notes that although the US provided the Saudis with targeting and logistical assistance for recent operations in support of anti-Houthi forces in Yemen, Donald Trump refused to participate directly in military operations.
Over the weekend, Trump said the group appealed to the US directly, telling him “the situation would be worked out and everything would be fine,” as the Journal put it.
$100+ oil going into the midterms is the worst possible outcome for the GOP. That figure is what finally woke people up about W. None of his other gaffes or shenanigans really mattered but maxing out your credit card at the pump, inspired folks who never would have before, to vote a black man in as president.
I don’t know. I’m hanging out in downtown St. Augustine this week and I’ve seen Trump flags all over the place. One hanging from a building right across from the fort says “Democrats are the enemy within.” I mean, they’re hanging from private residences, obviously, not government buildings, but still. I don’t think his voters are concerned by any of this. If you’re convinced there’s a vast global conspiracy against you and people “like you,” then any cost is acceptable to address it.
As long as ICE arrests continue to increase month-by-month and every last vestige of affirmative action is eliminated, the 35% support base will remain solid.
And, in any case, Ukraine, not the Iran excursion, is to blame for high diesel prices.
The same villa has an “ICE is nice” flag.
Miller & Homans are keeping them happy. Tending to the flock.
“people with criminal convictions accounted for less than a quarter of arrests in July, the Deportation Data Project figures show. That ?figure was nearly 60% in December 2024, the month before Trump took office for a second time.”
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/ice-arrests-keep-soaring-heres-why-they-are-not-leading-more-deportations-2026-09-14/
Counterpoint: I only saw one old Trump sign when I was back in Iowa a month ago. Trump may not being playing as well in the heartland. However, I do think the cult-like grip Trump has on the 35%-40% of voters will only break when the old man croaks.
heard from a friend who went to their State Fair, and he saw no red caps or flags when past seasons they were a sea. friend also thinks they’re gonna go purple and puts a lot of it on the tech industry moving into the area
I live in a neighborhood that voted him in, and has supported him for 10 years. I expect many of my neighbors were at J6. The volume of campaign signs has dropped significantly. I’m talking about houses that have had some sort of Trump sign up perpetually since 2016. I saw a truck down the street that removed the Brandon and now the sticker just says “Let’s Go”. When the financial pain finally hits the St. Augistinians, they will bail on him too. The conspiracies that feel real to these people aren’t as real as the financial pain of $7.00 diesel and a way overcooked AI bubble imploding on their 401(k)’s. 2027 is gonna be interesting.
They will still vote for the Republican candidate. So what is new?
Considering what a disaster the Iran war has been for the US and Trump, I wonder how much longer Hegseth will survive? Driscoll’s resignation suggests that Hegseth’s position is still strong.
Haven’t you heard Heis? Iran called and they are “begging for a deal” yet again
all ya need is an RPG and your opponents cell phone. now about that pentagon budget….