Houthis declare naval blockade on Saudi Arabia as Red Sea risks rise

Yemen’s Houthi movement said Monday it had begun a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia, escalating its confrontation with the Saudi-led coalition and raising new concerns for Red Sea trade. The declaration matters because Saudi Arabia has relied more heavily on Red Sea export routes since fighting around the Strait of Hormuz disrupted energy flows, according to Al Jazeera.

The group, officially called Ansar Allah, announced the move days after it threatened to place Saudi Arabia under siege over an attack on Sanaa International Airport, Al Jazeera reported. Yemen’s internationally recognized government said it carried out that airport attack to stop an Iranian aircraft from landing in the capital, while the Houthis blamed Saudi Arabia.

What the Houthis said

In a statement reported by Al Jazeera, the Houthis described their action as a response to what they called years of Saudi restrictions on Houthi-held territory. The group said it was acting under an “eye for an eye” principle and claimed a right to answer a blockade with a blockade.

The Houthis accused Saudi leaders of enforcing what they described as an unjust siege for nearly 12 years, including restrictions on ports, airports and land routes. They also warned Saudi Arabia against further action and said they were prepared for “all options,” according to Al Jazeera.

The movement seized Sanaa in 2014. Since 2015, the Saudi-led coalition has backed Yemen’s internationally recognized government in the country’s long-running war, according to Al Jazeera.

Recent military escalation

The blockade announcement followed a series of attacks and counterclaims. After the strike on Sanaa airport, the Houthis launched ballistic missiles at Abha International Airport in Saudi Arabia, Al Jazeera reported.

The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted the missiles. Al Jazeera also reported that renewed fighting between Houthi and government forces in Hodeidah has put pressure on a fragile calm that had held for about four years after a temporary truce.

It was not immediately clear how the Houthis would try to enforce a maritime blockade, Al Jazeera reported. The declaration also raised the question of whether the group could resume attacks on vessels near Yemen’s coast.

Why Bab al-Mandeb matters

The Bab al-Mandeb Strait links the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden and is a major route for ships using the Suez Canal. Al Jazeera reported that the strait is about 29km, or 18 miles, wide at its narrowest point between Yemen and the Horn of Africa, forcing shipping into two main channels.

The Houthis previously attacked ships in the area after Israel began its war in Gaza in 2023, according to Al Jazeera. Those attacks ended after a Gaza “ceasefire” was announced last October, Al Jazeera reported.

About 4.1 billion barrels of crude oil and refined petroleum products moved through Bab al-Mandeb in 2024, roughly 5 percent of the global total, according to figures cited by Al Jazeera. The outlet reported that with the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran in late February, a shutdown of Bab al-Mandeb could obstruct 25 percent of global oil and gas supply.

Pressure on Saudi oil routes

Saudi Arabia has used its East-West pipeline, also known as Petroline, to move crude from Abqaiq in the east to Yanbu on the Red Sea, according to Al Jazeera. The 1,201km pipeline was built in the 1980s and can carry about 7 million barrels a day, the outlet reported.

From Yanbu, tankers carry oil through Bab al-Mandeb to Asian markets and other destinations. Reuters, citing ship-tracking data from Kpler and Signal Ocean, reported that shipments from Yanbu averaged 4 million barrels per day in recent weeks, compared with about 973,000 barrels per day a year earlier.

Kpler data cited by Reuters showed total petroleum flows through Bab al-Mandeb reached 7.4 million barrels per day in June, about 7 percent of global oil output. That compared with 4.2 million barrels per day last year, according to the same data.

This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.