Houthis’ new threat could widen Iran war, put another shipping route at risk

23 JULY 2026

A declared blockade of Saudi Arabia by Yemen’s Houthi rebels has the potential to widen the Iran war and further disrupt global oil supplies and international trade.
The rebels say they have closed the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to Saudi-linked shipping in retaliation for the kingdom’s blockade on Yemen and a recent attack on the international airport in Yemen’s rebel-held capital, Sanaa.
The Houthis say Saudi Arabia struck the airport in Sanaa earlier in July 2026 in an attempt to stop a flight carrying Houthi leaders back from Iran, where they had attended the funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The plane landed safely at another airport.
The Houthis then launched missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia’s Abha International Airport in the most significant confrontation in years.
The Houthis claim to have forced six ships to reroute, but there was no independent confirmation.

Bab el-Mandeb

Bab el-Mandeb, at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, is a vital shipping chokepoint, connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Arabia.
Around 12% of the world’s trade, including a fourth of global container traffic, passes through the narrows, moving between Europe and Asia via Egypt’s Suez Canal.
The strait has become even more vital for Saudi oil exports since the disruption of the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran war has severely limited shipping out of the Persian Gulf.
The Houthis say they will only stop vessels connected to Saudi Arabia or going in and out of its Red Sea ports.
But during a similar blockade announced against Israel over the war in Gaza, the rebels attacked many vessels with little or no connection to that conflict.
The threat alone could keep international shippers from using the route.
The Houthis don’t control the part of Yemen’s coastline along Bab el-Mandeb — that is in the hands of its opponents in the country’s civil war. But they hold territory less than 100 km away.

Suez Canal and SUMED pipeline

Saudi Arabia could still get crude to market without using Bab el-Mandeb, by shipping up to 2.5 million barrels a day across the Red Sea to Egypt, whose SUMED pipeline can carry it to the Mediterranean.
It could also ship one million barrels a day through the Suez Canal.

Cape of Good Hope

International shippers could also reroute, as they did at the height of the war in Gaza.
But that means going the long way around the Cape of Good Hope off South Africa, adding one or two weeks to voyages — and raising costs.

Yemen’s Civil War

Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 when the rebels seized the capital, Sanaa, and much of northern Yemen, forcing the government into exile.
Saudi Arabia has led an international coalition fighting the rebels and also imposed an air and sea blockade on Houthi-held parts of Yemen, which had eased in recent years.
The Southern Transitional Council (STC) is a UAE-backed separatist political and paramilitary organization seeking the secession and independence of South Yemen.