Paris ¨C Hormuz and a handful of maritime straits around the world have served as the linchpin of global trade since the 16th century and have fueled geopolitical rivalries throughout history.
As Iran tightens its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, its Yemeni allies, the Houthi rebels, want to disrupt shipping in the Red Sea to and from Saudi ports and could possibly disturb traffic in another strait, Bab el-Mandeb, which ships must cross to reach the Suez Canal, experts say.
These two passages, which lock access to the Persian Gulf and to the Red Sea, are among the dozen or so straits considered vital to international trade.
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