The Saudi-Yemeni Red Sea fight risks regional upset

A slow-growing, strictly aerobic, Gram-negative, coccus bacterial strain, designated KAUST100406-0324T, was isolated from sea-floor sediment collected from the Red Sea, Saudi Arabia. The catalase- and oxidase-positive strain was non-sporulating and only slightly halophilic. Optimum growth occurred at 20–25 °C and at pH values ranging from 7.0 to 8.0. The major cellular fatty acids of the strain were unsaturated C18 : 1ω6c and/or C18 : 1ω7c, C18 : 1ω7c 11-methyl and C16 : 1ω7c and/or C16 : 1ω6c. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine and two unidentified phospholipids. Ubiquinone 10 was the predominant lipoquinone. The DNA G+C content of strain KAUST100406-0324T was 64.0 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that the novel strain belonged to the family Rhodobacteraceae of the class Alphaproteobacteria but formed a distinct evolutionary lineage from other bacterial species with validly published names. The 16S rRNA gene sequence of the novel strain was distantly related, but formed a monophyletic cluster with, those of bacteria from two moderately halophilic genera, Hwanghaeicola and Maribius . The similarity of the sequence between the novel strain KAUST100406-0324T and the type strains Hwanghaeicola aestuarii Y26T (accession number FJ230842), Maribius pelagius B5-6T (DQ514326) and Maribius salinus CL-SP27T (AY906863) were 94.5 %, 95.2 % and 95.3 %, respectively. Based on the physiological, phylogenetic and chemotaxonomic characteristics presented in this study, we propose that this strain represents a novel species of a new genus in the family Rhodobacteraceae , for which the name of Profundibacterium mesophilum gen. nov., sp. nov. was proposed, with KAUST100406-0324T ( = JCM 17872T = NRRL B-59665T) as the type strain.

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Saudi's Yemen campaign may disrupt Horn relations

Emerald Expert Briefings ◽

10.1108/oxan-db200262 ◽

2015 ◽

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Red Sea ◽

Horn Of Africa ◽

Content Type ◽

Decisive Victory ◽

Arab States ◽

Strategic Relationships ◽

The Impact

Subject Implications of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen for relation in the Horn of Africa. Significance The intervention of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen threatens to re-order strategic relationships between concerned Arab states and the Horn of Africa. The largest indication of this shift is the Red Sea security agreement between Eritrea and Saudi Arabia on April 30. The agreement has rankled Ethiopia and its regional allies, who are keen to 'contain' Eritrea and prevent its bid to emerge from international isolation. Given the range of other interests that Ethiopia shares with Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Yemen, it is unlikely that a significant rupture will occur. However, the impact of these tensions could be significant, as Ethiopia will remain committed to thwarting closer relations between Asmara and Arab states. Impacts Riyadh's outreach to allies is a tactic for success in its Yemen campaign and may not necessarily indicate long-term strategic shifts. Such new relationships will be highly contingent on developments in Yemen. However, Saudi Arabia will not halt the campaign until a decisive victory against the Huthi rebels and forces loyal to the former president.

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Yemen conflict carries risks for global shipping

Emerald Expert Briefings ◽

10.1108/oxan-db199132 ◽

2015 ◽

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Red Sea ◽

World Trade ◽

Arabian Peninsula ◽

Suez Canal ◽

Maritime Security ◽

Gulf Of Aden ◽

Port City ◽

Content Type ◽

Maritime Domain Awareness

Significance Instability has worsened significantly in Yemen since the Huthi 'coup' against President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi in January. His government has been forced into exile; the Huthis have fought pitched battles with local opponents for control of the southern port city of Aden; Saudi Arabia has led an intensive campaign of airstrikes and imposed a naval blockade of major seaports; and al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has expanded in the south east. Located next to some of the world's most important shipping routes, Yemen's crisis could have significant ramifications on regional maritime security and world trade. Impacts Maritime domain awareness in the Gulf of Aden and southern stretches of the Red Sea could be significantly reduced. Risk of accidents between Iranian and Saudi coalition vessels has increased, but a more serious confrontation is unlikely. US, European and regional navies will mobilise to protect the viability of the Suez Canal maritime corridor.

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Egypt's Sisi is set to stay despite challenges

Emerald Expert Briefings ◽

10.1108/oxan-db211277 ◽

2016 ◽

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Red Sea ◽

Large Scale ◽

Police Brutality ◽

Sea Islands ◽

Content Type ◽

Gulf Arab

Subject Two-year outlook for Sisi. Significance President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi is approaching the mid-point in his first four-year term in office faced with an increasingly disaffected public. Conflicting reports on the disappearance of EgyptAir flight MS804 on May 19 are weakening his government's credibility while an agreement in April to cede sovereignty over two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia prompted protests about both that decision and other aspects of his regime, particularly police brutality and a deteriorating economy. Impacts The dissatisfaction with Sisi is unlikely to develop into any kind of large-scale uprising. Sisi may nevertheless face stirrings of revolt within factions of the security establishment. The authoritarian system does not lend itself to the emergence of a credible rival that could present a realistic challenge to Sisi. Sisi's Gulf Arab allies, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, are likely to stand by him.

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Yemeni Huthis’ Saudi targeting endangers Red Sea trade

Emerald Expert Briefings ◽

10.1108/oxan-es258194 ◽

2020 ◽

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Red Sea ◽

Content Type

Headline SAUDI ARABIA: Huthi targeting endangers Red Sea trade

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UAE drawdown will change the dynamic of Yemen’s war

Emerald Expert Briefings ◽

10.1108/oxan-db245736 ◽

2019 ◽

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Red Sea ◽

Armed Forces ◽

Content Type ◽

Policy Shift ◽

Red Sea Coast ◽

Sea Coast

Significance The separatists appear to have captured most of Aden. UAE officials say they will still provide assistance to their local partners, after the early July announcement that the UAE would begin a substantial drawdown of the armed forces deployed to Yemen as part of the coalition with Saudi Arabia to combat the Huthis. Impacts The UAE’s formal de-prioritisation of the war enhances Huthi ability to solidify tribal support and allows them to secure further support. The policy shift will further affect already strained UAE ties with Saudi Arabia and its de facto ruler, Mohammed bin Salman. A renewed offensive on the Red Sea coast is now highly improbable.

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Roads of Arabia: New finds of Aqaba amphorae in the Red Sea from a newly discovered wreck site at Jeddah/Eliza shoals

10.31338/uw.2083-537x.pam29.1.05 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Rupert Brandmeier

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Red Sea ◽

Saudi Arabian ◽

Maritime Archaeology ◽

Western Coast ◽

Research Activities ◽

Red Sea Coast ◽

Insight Into ◽

Sea Coast

This paper concerns a probable shipwreck cargo of Aqaba amphorae, which was discovered during the second season of the survey project along the Saudi Arabian coast, initiated by nautical archaeologists of Philipps-University Marburg and conducted in cooperation with members of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Heritage in autumn 2013. Seafaring and sea trade was, according to the few ancient sources and modern research activities, a hazardous endeavor in antiquity. Transport containers like the Aqaba Amphorae played a major role in sea trade, a significant number of which have been detected on various sites along the Red Sea coast and its hinterland. The chronological classification as well as the application is far from complete, and recent archaeometrical investigations help to clarify the logistical aspects of manufacturing and distribution of Aqaba amphorae. Finding a number of remains of Aqaba amphorae at a supposed shipwreck site close to Jeddah delivers new insight into the maritime routes and activities along the western coast of Saudi Arabia. The documentary material currently available is the baseline for further research in the field of maritime archaeology as it pertains to trade in the Red Sea.

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A Nabatean port on the Red Sea: note on the pottery finds from al-Qusayr (al-Wajh, Saudi Arabia)

10.31338/uw.2083-537x.pam29.1.23 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Caroline Durand

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

19Th Century ◽

Red Sea ◽

Point Of View ◽

The Other ◽

Trade Routes ◽

Other Hand ◽

Roman Egypt ◽

Pottery Sherds ◽

First Time

Al-Qusayr is located 40 km south of modern al-Wajh, roughly 7 km from the eastern Red Sea shore. This site is known since the mid-19th century, when the explorer R. Burton described it for the first time, in particular the remains of a monumental building so-called al-Qasr. In March 2016, a new survey of the site was undertaken by the al-‘Ula–al-Wajh Survey Project. This survey focused not only on al-Qasr but also on the surrounding site corresponding to the ancient settlement. A surface collection of pottery sherds revealed a striking combination of Mediterranean and Egyptian imports on one hand, and of Nabataean productions on the other hand. This material is particularly homogeneous on the chronological point of view, suggesting a rather limited occupation period for the site. Attesting contacts between Mediterranean merchants, Roman Egypt and the Nabataean kingdom, these new data allow a complete reassessment of the importance of this locality in the Red Sea trade routes during antiquity.

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