Recent Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia have sounded alarm bells around the world. The attacks on Najran and Abha airports were a serious violation of the Kingdom’s sovereignty and an attempt to damage its economic infrastructure. But Saturday’s deadly attack on King Khalid International Airport was more ominous still. It damaged a major international airport in the capital and showed the Houthi militia’s brazen audacity. The attack was condemned by the UN secretary-general, the United States, Britain, the European Union, the Arab League, Russia and many other states. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called it a heinous crime.

Any damage to Gulf economies has international repercussions. The Gulf is much more than a major supplier of energy to the world, and the Strait of Hormuz has emerged as a strategic chokepoint for global supply chains. Beyond energy, the region is an important source of plastics, fertilizers and construction materials, and its prosperous economies keep its ports busy with imports and exports. The Gulf also employs millions of foreign workers, including five million Pakistanis. It is therefore Pakistan’s single largest source of remittances, accounting for 54.4 percent of the total.

Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the Arabian Peninsula, with........

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