RED SEA (Syllabus: GS Paper 1 – Geography)
Context: The United States has announced the launch of a multinational force to protect trade in the Red Sea after attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels forced at least a dozen shipping lines to suspend operations
Red sea
- About: The Red Sea is an inlet of the Indian Ocean between Africa and Asia.
oAbout 12 percent of global trade passes through the Red Sea, which connects to the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal, including 30 percent of container traffic.
- Bordering Countries:Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Sudan, Eritrea and Djibouti.
- Salient features: Part of African Rift Valley(Great Rift Valley).
- Nearby important locations:
oBab el Mandeb strait : It connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. (in the Indian ocean).
oGulf of Aqaba: A large gulf at the northern tip of the Red Sea, east of the Sinai Peninsula and west of the Arabian Peninsula. Its coastline is divided among four countries: Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia.
oSuez Canal: It is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia.
About Houthi:
- It is Yemen's Iran-backed rebels group.
- It is a Shia Islamist political and military organization.
