Yemen’s foreign minister-designate has warned that the Houthi movement seeks to establish control over shipping in the Red Sea’s Bab al-Mandeb Strait, mirroring Iran’s strategic influence in the Strait of Hormuz. Speaking at the Yemeni embassy in Riyadh on Monday, Afrah al-Zouba stated that the Iran-backed group has become increasingly emboldened due to insufficient international response to their regional activities.
The Bab al-Mandeb Strait serves as a critical chokepoint connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the broader Indian Ocean. Approximately 30 percent of global container traffic and 12 to 15 percent of overall global trade transit through the waterway. Yemen’s geographic position, particularly control of its western territories, affords significant leverage over maritime passage through the strait. Recent data indicates that Red Sea shipping has already declined, with vessel traffic substantially reduced.
Tensions have escalated markedly during July, marking the most significant tensions since a 2022 truce agreement. The Houthis declared a maritime siege on Red Sea shipping to and from Saudi Arabia and conducted missile and drone attacks against the kingdom. Saudi Arabia responded with airstrikes targeting the Houthi-held port city of Hodeidah. Clashes between Houthi and government forces around Hodeidah resulted in nearly 20 casualties from both sides earlier in the month.
Al-Zouba indicated that Yemen’s government, which Saudi Arabia supports, is prepared for escalation, with ongoing exchanges of fire along the contested front line between territories controlled by each side. The current tensions represent a significant shift from the relative calm of recent years following the conflict that began in 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa. The broader conflict has exacted an enormous humanitarian toll, with an estimated 377,000 deaths between 2015 and early 2022, predominantly from conflict-related consequences including famine and disease.
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