Bab-el-Mandeb

Geographical location

The Bab al - Mandab (Arabic باب المندب, DMG Bāb al - Mandab, the Gate of Tears', also used in Germany is the Bab el - Mandeb spelling ) is a roughly 27 -kilometer-wide strait. It connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, which is a part of the Arabian Sea and thus the Indian Ocean.

Between Bab al - Mandab and Cape Deschnjow of the Bering Strait is 10,858 km with the largest distance within the Asian continent.

In Bab al - Mandeb are the uninhabited Sawabi Islands.

Marine and Piracy

All shipping routes from Europe to the Indian Ocean (except for tankers that are too large for passage through the Suez Canal and must go around the Cape of Good Hope ) through the Bab al - Mandab. For shipping to the Bab al - Mandeb has the same meaning as the Suez Canal. The riparian countries are Yemen, Eritrea and Djibouti.

The Foreign Office has issued a travel warning for these countries. The Bab al - Mandab is grouped with the Gulf of Aden at the world's most vulnerable through piracy areas. The German Navy is committed together with their allies in the action Enduring Freedom, which is to fight with warships locally against terrorism, arms smuggling and piracy. The operations center is in Djibouti.

Plans to build a bridge

A company owned by Tarek bin Laden is planning to build a bridge across the Bab al Mandab, between Yemen and Djibouti on the intervening island of Perim. The project aims to promote economic and trade within the region and facilitate African Muslims the pilgrimage to Mecca. It is expected that even migrants who currently make the dangerous journey across Boosaaso, would use the route; Critics say that even terrorists and would benefit from easier access from the Arabian Peninsula to Africa. There are also suggestions for the construction of a dam at the Bab al - Mandab to shut off the Red Sea and to gain energy from hydropower: the project Red Sea Dam.