Yemen's Houthis reached the strategic island of Perim in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Friday Sept 11, four Yemeni government sources told Reuters [1]. Perim controls the narrow passage linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden — a second major oil chokepoint alongside Hormuz. The Houthi military spokesperson said navigation remains safe except for Saudi vessels under a previously announced ban, and vowed continued escalation [1]. Earlier satellite imagery verified by Reuters showed smoke near Saudi Arabia's East-West oil pipeline, which had been temporarily shut following attacks that caused injuries [1]. Saudi crude supply fell to 6 million bpd in August, lowest in over three decades per IEA [1].

Hormuz transit data remains depressed: seven vessels crossed on Sept 11, down from 11 the prior day and well below the 10-day average of 15, per preliminary ship-tracking data [2]. Figures exclude vessels that switched off AIS transponders, so actual traffic could be higher [2]. Maersk raised freight rates on affected services Sept 12, citing higher operational and risk-related costs from ongoing disruption [3].

Diplomatically, Iran confirmed Sept 11 that its representatives and those of Iraq and Gulf Arab states would meet in Oman on Monday (Sept 14) to discuss safe commercial shipping routes in Hormuz [1]. Iran and Oman had previously exchanged views on a phased framework including a temporary joint shipping corridor [1].

The combined picture is widening geographic escalation (Houthis at Perim), continued Hormuz closure, and rising freight costs — but no explicit evidence yet of oil flows changing beyond the already-established slower pattern. Conflicting claims persist between US transit figures and ship tracker data [1][2].