Iran-US Conflict Expands into Multiple Fronts across Middle East

The conflict between Iran and the US has expanded into multiple fronts across the Middle East, as the two sides engage in a struggle for control of key trade routes.

The epicenter of the violence is the Strait of Hormuz, an important waterway that connects the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea. The strait carries nearly a fifth of the world's traded oil and gas, but Iran has been blocking international traffic by attacking ships attempting to use the route overseen by the US military.

The Houthis in Yemen have also declared a blockade on Saudi Arabia, threatening shipping through another major trade route leading through the Bab el-Mandeb strait and the Red Sea up to Egypt's Suez Canal. The Houthi-Saudi tensions are rooted in a separate conflict that has been reigniting over the past decade.

The US and Saudi fighter aircraft bombed militia sites in Iraq, killing at least 20 fighters and six Iranian advisers, after Saudi Arabia accused Iran-backed militias of launching drone attacks on its oil facilities. The Iraqi government condemned the strikes, saying they came as it was trying to investigate what had happened.