Saudi Arabia faces tough choices as Houthis gain in Yemen

Saudi Arabia is being increasingly impacted by the rapidly escalating conflict across its southern border in Yemen where Iran-backed Houthis are fighting Saudi-backed Yemeni governmental forces. Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia injured another 13 people on Monday night, bringing the total number of people injured since the conflict escalated in July to about 100. In July, the Houthis also blocked Saudi oil shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a key waterway that had been serving as an alternative route for Saudi oil exports amid Iran's blockade of the nearby Strait of Hormuz. Last week, Saudi Arabia's alternative lifeline for oil export, the East-West pipeline, was allegedly targeted by Iranian proxy militias in Iraq.