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Houthis
Armed GroupYE

Houthis

Yemeni armed movement in Sanaa; blockades Israeli and Saudi shipping via radio warnings alone.

The Houthis, Yemen's Zaydi Shia rulers of Sanaa, declared a naval blockade of Saudi-linked shipping through Bab al-Mandeb on 20 July 2026, closing a second global oil chokepoint by radio warning alone.

Last refreshed: 11 August 2026 · Appears in 3 active topics

Key Question

Can a blockade enforced only by radio really close a global shipping strait?

Timeline for Houthis

#172 18 Aug

Mentioned in: Detour route writes off a cargo ship

Iran Conflict 2026
#171 15 Aug

Mocha port shuts after 25 missiles

Iran Conflict 2026
#169 10 Aug

Fired missiles that killed six people aboard a cargo vessel

Iran Conflict 2026: Six dead in the Bab el-Mandeb
#168 6 Aug

Carried out the reported attacks

Iran Conflict 2026: Yemen's front began with a blocked flight
#167 5 Aug

Named as coordinating under IRGC guidance

Iran Conflict 2026: Riyadh names energy, port and airport targets
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Background

The Houthis, formally Ansar Allah, are a Zaydi Shia movement that seized Yemen's capital Sanaa and now govern territory holding more than 70% of the country's population. The group grew out of the Believing Youth movement and radicalised after the 2003 Iraq war; it takes its name from Hussein al-Houthi, killed by government forces in 2004, and has been led since by his brother Abdul-Malik al-Houthi.

Control of Yemen's Red Sea coast gives the Houthis strategic reach they would otherwise lack, flanking the Bab al-Mandeb strait and letting Iran pressure a major oil route without direct exposure. The group carried out more than 100 attacks on commercial shipping between 2023 and 2025, and its arsenal of anti-ship missiles and drones has been substantially upgraded with Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps assistance since 2020.

This lets the Houthis threaten shipping through announcement rather than engagement alone, a method Saudi officials have told Washington is more disruptive to Gulf trade than open war . The event record includes and .

Key Issues
Red Sea blockade

A blockade declared by radio alone

The Houthis declared Bab al-Mandeb shut to Saudi shipping on 20 July, and six vessels changed course within 48 hours without a single shot fired . Over the following fortnight the group escalated from warnings to strikes, hitting the tankers Encelia, Layla and NCC Masa, then setting Saudi Aramco's Jazan refinery alight on 24 July before widening its target set to Yanbu the following day.

By 5 August the Houthis were claiming strikes on two more tankers, the Wafaa and the Daisy, though UKMTO logged only one confirmed blast, a gap typical of Houthi claims running ahead of independent verification . Saudi crude loadings through the strait fell 36% in the fortnight before the formal blockade, and none has moved through it since.

Common Questions

A blockade declared by radio alone

Have the Houthis attacked any ships since 2025?
No. Rear Admiral Vasileios Gryparis, commander of the EU's Operation Aspides mission, said in July 2026 the Houthis have not attacked a merchant vessel since September 2025, despite the new Saudi shipping embargo.Source: Lowdown reporting
Why did the Houthis blockade Saudi Arabia?
The Houthis framed the 20 July 2026 embargo as retaliation for Saudi Arabia's blockade of Yemeni ports and a Saudi strike on Sanaa airport that hit an aircraft carrying Houthi officials home from Ali Khamenei's funeral.Source: Lowdown reporting
Who is Yahya Saree?
Yahya Saree is the Houthi military spokesman who announced the 20 July 2026 maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia and has publicly confirmed nearly every major Houthi strike through the war.Source: Lowdown reporting

Reference

What is Bab al-Mandeb and why does it matter?
Bab al-Mandeb is the strait between Yemen and Djibouti linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. The Houthis control its Yemeni coastline and have used declared bans there to pressure both Israel and Saudi Arabia.Source: Lowdown reporting
What is the connection between the Houthis and Iran's seizure of the Hui Chuan?
Iran's IRGC seized the Hui Chuan floating armoury vessel in May 2026 using the same commercial-vessel-seizure template the Houthis pioneered with the Galaxy Leader in 2023, showing Iran is now executing directly what it previously conducted through its Yemeni proxy.Source: Lowdown iran-conflict-2026
Who are the Houthis?
The Houthis, formally Ansar Allah, are a Zaydi Shia armed movement from northern Yemen. They seized the capital Sanaa in September 2014 and now control territory home to over 70% of Yemen's population. Iran backs them with weapons and training via the IRGC.Source: Lowdown
What is the relationship between the Houthis and Iran?
Iran supplies the Houthis with ballistic missiles, anti-ship weapons and drones via the IRGC Quds Force, substantially upgrading their arsenal since 2020. The June 2026 Bab al-Mandeb activation followed a formal IRGC authorisation to open "other fronts", confirming coordinated rather than independent action.
What is the difference between the Houthis and Hezbollah?
Both are Iran-backed movements within the Axis of Resistance. Hezbollah operates in Lebanon and holds seats in Parliament; the Houthis govern much of Yemen and control strategic Red Sea coastline. Hezbollah has a more sophisticated command structure; the Houthis have greater territorial depth and maritime access.Source: Lowdown
Who funds and arms the Houthis?
Iran supplies the Houthis with ballistic missiles, anti-ship weapons, and drone systems through the IRGC Quds Force. The weapons programme accelerated substantially after 2020.
Are Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb both closed at once?
Since 8 June 2026 both regional chokepoints have sat under hostile authority together, Hormuz under IRGC and CENTCOM control and Bab al-Mandeb under a Houthi-declared exclusion, though Houthi enforcement has so FAR relied on radio warnings rather than force.Source: Lowdown reporting
How do the Houthis threaten global shipping?
The Houthis control Yemen's Red Sea coastline flanking Bab al-Mandeb, a 29-kilometre narrows through which roughly 12% of global trade flows. They launched over 100 attacks on commercial vessels in 2023-2025 and declared a total ban on Israeli maritime navigation in June 2026.Source: event
Why did the Houthis ban Israeli shipping from the Red Sea in June 2026?
Ansar Allah declared a complete ban on Israeli maritime navigation on 8 June 2026, firing rockets at Jaffa the same day. The group linked the action to Israeli operations in Gaza, Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen and Iran, and the IRGC had formally authorised activating Bab al-Mandeb as "other fronts" in the maritime pressure campaign.Source: event
Are the Houthis still attacking Israel in 2026?
Yes. In March 2026 the Houthis fired on Israel three consecutive days. Their command-and-control capacity was degraded by Israeli strikes in August-September 2025, but launch platforms remain intact and a sustainable attack tempo was demonstrated.Source: Lowdown iran-conflict-2026
Could the Houthis close the Bab al-Mandeb strait?
The Houthis control Yemeni coastline flanking Bab al-Mandeb and have explicitly threatened closure. Deputy minister Mohammed Mansour called it 'among our options' in March 2026. Combined with Iran's Hormuz blockade, dual closure would cut roughly 25% of global seaborne energy supply.Source: Lowdown iran-conflict-2026
What did the Houthis seize in the Red Sea and why?
The Houthis seized the Galaxy Leader car carrier in November 2023, establishing the precedent for using commercial vessel seizures as coercive diplomacy in support of Iran's Resistance Axis. Iran replicated the tactic directly with the Hui Chuan seizure in May 2026.Source: Lowdown iran-conflict-2026
Why are the Houthis attacking Red Sea shipping?
The Houthis launched over 100 attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea from late 2023 to 2025, citing solidarity with Gaza. The attacks halved traffic through Bab al-Mandeb and triggered a major international naval escort operation.Source: Lowdown
Source Material
CSIS: Houthi Attacks in the Red SeaHouthisYemen's HouthisWho are the Houthis?Houthi movement