Houthi Rebels Impose Red Sea Blockade on Saudi Shipping After Saudi Airstrike on Sanaa Airport

Yemen's Houthi rebels declared a blockade of Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, closing the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to Saudi-linked shipping. The group said the action responded to Saudi Arabia's blockade on Yemen and a recent strike on Sanaa International Airport. The Houthis claimed they forced six ships to reroute the same day, though no independent confirmation emerged.

Three Houthi officials told the AP they had planned the disruption for months, using naval mines, explosive-laden boats, drones and helicopters to board ships after first issuing warnings to vessels crossing designated boundaries. Bab el-Mandeb connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.

Around 12 percent of world trade, including a fourth of global container traffic, passes through the strait.

More than 7 million barrels of petroleum transited daily in June, up from around 4 million before the Iran war. Saudi Arabia has exported about 4 million barrels of oil a day through its Red Sea port of Yanbu. It can still move up to 2.5 million barrels a day across the Red Sea to Egypt's SUMED pipeline and 1 million barrels through the Suez Canal.

President Donald Trump addressed the declaration in the Oval Office. "So far, it hasn't happened," he said. Saudi Arabia's military spokesperson Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki said all Houthi threats against transiting vessels would be dealt with swiftly and firmly.

The Houthis attacked over 100 vessels during the Gaza war before U.S. and Israeli strikes ended those operations in early 2025. Major fighting in Yemen ended with a truce in 2022.