Iran-U.S. War Drives Oil Above $100; Houthis Seize Mokha, Threaten Bab al-Mandab

U.S. crude oil topped $100 per barrel on September 10 as markets priced a prolonged Iran-U.S. conflict following Iranian missile strikes on the Mawafaq Salti Air Base in Jordan and CENTCOM's claimed destruction of five Iranian oil tankers. CBS News reported, citing direct sources, that several U.S. military aircraft were damaged in the Iranian strikes. Simultaneously, Reuters citing three Yemeni government military sources reported that Houthi forces seized Mokha port, bringing them closer to control of the Bab al-Mandab strait — one of the world's most critical maritime chokepoints for oil and commercial shipping. The ECB hiked interest rates, with reporting citing the Iran war as an explicit inflation aggravator. Ukrainian drones struck Makhachkala and Sochi in Russia as a secondary front, while a Russian drone incursion delayed Zelensky's flight near Moldova.