Kuala Lampur, July 24 -- The reported Houthi missile and drone attacks on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea mark a dangerous widening of the current regional conflict.

When confirmed in full, they demonstrate that the crisis is no longer confined to the Strait of Hormuz but is spreading to another of the world's most vital maritime chokepoints-the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

This development has five major implications.

First, it undermines every diplomatic effort to stabilise West Asia.

Even if negotiations between the United States and Iran were to resume, attacks by Iranian-aligned groups such as the Houthis create new fronts that complicate de-escalation.

Every fresh attack invites retaliation, making diplomacy progressively harder.

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