Bab Iskender

The Bab Iskender (Arabic: باب اسكندر, lit. 'Alexandar's Strait'), also variously known as the Eastern Strait, the Small Strait, the Narrow Pass or the Small Pass, is the eastern section of the Bab-el-Mandeb straits, which separates Ras Menheli in Yemen, on the Arabian Peninsula from Ras Siyyan in Djibouti, on the Horn of Africa.

Bab-el-Mandeb area with description

Geography

The strait is 4 miles (6.4 km) wide and 14 fathoms (26 m) deep. The Yemeni island of Perim divides the strait into two channels, Bab Iskender and Dact-el-Mayun respectively.^[1]

The western section of the straits, Dact-el-Mayun, (also known as the Western Strait, the Large Strait, the Large Pass or the Wide Pass) has a width of about 15 miles (24 km) and a depth of 180 fathoms (330 m).^[1] The straits are about 20 miles (32 km) wide in total.^[2]

Near the African coast lies a group of smaller islands known as the Seven Brothers, which belong to Djibouti. Further along, on the Western side of the Dact-el-Mayun, is Eritrea.^[3]

The island of Perim, which is owned by Yemen, is a strategic military outpost, due to the Bab-el-Mandeb's position as a shipping route which leads up to the Suez Canal.^[4]

Irregular tidal streams make navigation of the Bab Iskender dangerous for ships, however it is still used for shipping, despite frequent shipwrecks in the vicinity of Perim.^[5]

In 2008 a project to connect Yemen and Djibouti, crossing the Bab Iskender and Dact-el-Mayun by means of a suspension bridge, via Perim was announced. Al Noor Holding Investment Company launched the $200 billion project, however it was indefinitely delayed in 2010.^[6][7]