Iran-Backed Proxy Fronts, Red Sea Risks, and Iraq’s Security Vacuum

Houthi attacks and coalition retaliation around Bab el-Mandab are threatening Red Sea shipping and increasingly putting Saudi infrastructure and energy security under pressure. The widening regional and economic fallout could complicate diplomacy and spread across Yemen and the Horn of Africa. Iran-linked attacks in Iraqi Kurdistan continue, but attribution and battlefield details remain unevenly verified.