Expanded US-Led Naval Task Force To Protect Red Sea Shipping

Handout photo datedAugust 8, 2023 shows the Royal Saudi Navy frigate 708 HMS Taif, the amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) and the dock landing ship USS Carter Hall (LSD 50) transit the Red Sea. The Pentagon has convinced more than a half dozen allies to join a strengthened naval task force in the Red Sea amid mounting attacks by Iran-backed rebels on commercial shipping that have driven oil prices higher. More than 9mn barrels a day of oil shipments, or almost a tenth of global demand, pass through the Red Sea, making it one of the world’s busiest energy chokepoints. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Riley Gasdia via ABACAPRESS.COM