Houthis announce maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia, threatening Bab el-Mandeb shipping

Published Jul 27, 10:17 PM UTC

On July 20, 2026, Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi movement announced a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia, threatening to target Saudi-linked vessels transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The escalation follows a July 13 attack on Sanaa International Airport, which the Houthis blamed on Saudi Arabia, and is framed as retaliation for a nearly 12-year Saudi-led blockade of Yemen. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a narrow 30 km waterway linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, is a critical global chokepoint for oil and commercial shipping. In 2023, 9.3 million barrels of oil per day transited the strait, though volumes dropped to around 4.2 million by 2025 due to prior Houthi attacks. Disruption forces costly detours around the Cape of Good Hope, adding 10-15 days to voyages. The Houthis had previously avoided direct confrontation with Saudi Arabia, which had sought to de-escalate tensions after years of war in Yemen.