Houthi Blockade on Saudi Arabia Threatens Critical Red Sea Oil Chokepoint

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi group announced on Monday it will impose a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia, escalating regional tensions and posing a new, significant threat to global energy security. The move raises the prospect of a closure of the Bab el-Mandeb strait, a critical chokepoint for oil tankers, which could effectively shut down a primary alternative route for Middle East crude exports.

A New Front in the Energy Crisis

The Houthi threat comes as the global energy market is already constrained by Iran's partial blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. In response to that disruption, Saudi Arabia had rerouted a significant portion of its oil exports to its Red Sea port of Yanbu.

• Shipments from Yanbu averaged 4 million barrels per day (bpd) in recent weeks, a sharp increase from approximately 973,000 bpd a year ago, according to data from Kpler and Signal Ocean.
• Total petroleum volumes transiting the Bab el-Mandeb strait, the southern gateway to the Red Sea, reached 7.4 million bpd in June, representing about 7% of global oil output.

A serious disruption at Bab el-Mandeb would mean that both of the Middle East’s major oil export routes are obstructed simultaneously, a development that would deliver a severe shock to energy markets and global supply chains.

Geopolitical Escalation

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The Houthi announcement follows a recent escalation in Yemen's long-running conflict. The internationally recognised government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia, reportedly struck Sanaa airport last week. The Houthis blamed Saudi Arabia and retaliated by firing missiles at Abha airport in the kingdom. Following the exchange, senior Houthi official Mohammad al-Farah warned in an interview on Iran’s Press TV that the Bab el-Mandeb strait would be closed if the situation continued to escalate.

While Iran supports the Houthis as part of its regional "Axis of Resistance," the extent of its direct control over the group's actions is a subject of debate. The U.S. alleges that Iran arms, funds, and trains the group, a claim the Houthis deny.

Echoes of Past Disruption

This is not the first time the Houthis have targeted Red Sea shipping. Following the start of the Gaza conflict in late 2023, the group launched numerous attacks on commercial vessels, claiming it was acting in support of Palestinians. Those attacks severely disrupted global trade, forcing major shipping lines to reroute vessels around Africa.

According to the Suez Canal Authority, the previous attacks led to a 52% drop in traffic through the canal in 2025 compared to 2023 levels. While some shipping firms had recently begun resuming Red Sea routes, this new, direct threat of a blockade against Saudi Arabia marks a significant and dangerous new phase in the regional conflict.