By GB News (World News) | Created at 2026-09-12 03:45:54 | Updated at 2026-09-12 04:56:18
1 hour ago
Britain is on alert for a fuel price surge as catastrophic new war fronts in the Middle East threaten shipping and oil around the world.
Last night Saudi Arabia shut down its East-West pipeline after it came under aerial attack, potentially from Iranian-backed terrorists in Iraq.
The 745-mile-long pipeline running across the whole country had helped the Saudis to bypass the chaos in the Strait of Hormuz, where tanker traffic has slowed to a trickle due to the war between the US and Iran.
But on Thursday morning, it was hit from above - with the resulting miles-high smokestacks visible from space.
Global oil prices have risen above $100 (£74) per barrel once again as a result, just days after unleaded petrol prices rose in the UK by 5p a litre in the space of a week, according to the RAC, which warned there was "no sign of any relief".
Fuel prices have soared since the war with Iran began at the end of February, with the fighting severely disrupting supplies of crude oil - a key ingredient in petrol and diesel - across the Middle East.
While the price of Brent is still below its April peak of $120, it's still far above the $70 it was trading at before the conflict started.
Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, which battled the Royal Navy more than two years ago, are now reemerging as a force to be reckoned with, and could soon have the power to shut off the Red Sea.
If they do so, ships hoping to travel from Europe to Asia and vice versa would have to sail around the whole of Africa, increasing shipping costs around the globe.
The result of the attack on the pipeline was visible from space
REUTERS
They have already seized the strategic island of Perim on Friday at the mouth of the Red Sea, in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
However, they claim they pose no threat to international shipping - only to Saudi vessels.
"Iran, directly and through proxies, controls two of the most strategic choke points in the Middle East and the world," Farea al-Muslimi, a research fellow at London's Chatham House think tank, told the BBC.
The country now effectively runs "more than 35 per cent of the fuel and oil trade globally", he added.
"This is as much leverage as a nuclear bomb."
MAPPED: The two chokepoints threatening the Middle East
GB NEWS
While Helima Croft, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said the Houthis are now "threatening to close the main oil relief valve for the seven-month war".
"The real question is whether the US will step in to try to avert the worst-case outcome for this critical waterway," she added.
The group operates in Yemen, which sits on Saudi Arabia's southern border.
The Saudis are backing the Yemeni Government, which has been unsuccessfully fighting the Houthis on the ground across the country.
Saudi crude supply has now fallen to its lowest level in more than three decades, partly due to attacks on ships passing through Bab el-Mandeb.
The Saudi-backed Yemeni Government is unsuccessfully fighting the Houthis on the ground
REUTERS
The Houthis' dramatic advance down the Red Sea coast came with direct guidance from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Iran told them last week to escalate their attacks on Saudi Arabia, promising more cash, weapons and personnel to help them do so.
As a result, the Saudis have pleaded with Washington for military help to deal with the group.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called Donald Trump twice on Thursday, urging him to launch strikes against the group.
He said no.
