Houthis Announce Maritime Embargo Against Saudi Arabia, Forcing Oil Tankers to Reverse Course in Red Sea

Yemen's Houthi rebels have declared a maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia, threatening to target ships at Saudi ports. In response, oil tankers including the Xin Long Yang and Rodos, carrying crude to China and India, have executed abrupt U-turns in the Red Sea. The escalation follows a Houthi retaliatory strike on Saudi Arabia's Abha airport after the bombing of Sana'a airport. The blockade threatens the Bab el-Mandeb strait, risking up to 7% of global oil supplies.

Houthi naval blockade announcement

• ▪The Houthis' Sanaa-based Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center sent an email warning shipping companies not to load or discharge cargo at Saudi Arabian ports
• ▪The Houthis threatened that any vessel violating the cargo ban would be subject to targeting in any location within their operational reach
• ▪Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi rebels declared a naval blockade and maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia on July 20, 2026

Sana'a airport bombing incident

• ▪The runway at Sana'a International Airport in Yemen was bombed on July 13, 2026, forcing an Iranian aircraft carrying a Houthi delegation to divert
• ▪Yemen's internationally recognized government claimed responsibility for the Sana'a airport strike, while the Houthis blamed Saudi Arabia

Abha airport retaliatory strike

• ▪The strike on Abha International Airport marked the first Houthi attack on Saudi territory since an informal ceasefire took effect in 2022
• ▪The Houthis launched missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia's Abha International Airport in retaliation for the airstrikes on Sana'a International Airport

Bab el-Mandeb strategic vulnerability

• ▪The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is a 32-kilometer-wide waterway connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden through which approximately 12% of global trade passes
• ▪A full closure of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait could remove up to 7% of the global oil supply by blocking Saudi Arabian exports

Saudi Arabia's military dilemma

• ▪Saudi military spokesperson Major General Turki al-Malki stated that the Saudi-led coalition would deal swiftly and firmly with all Houthi threats against transiting vessels
• ▪Saudi Arabia has diverted over 70% of its crude exports, approximately 4 million barrels per day, to its Red Sea port of Yanbu due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz

Red Sea shipping disruption

• ▪The very large crude carrier Xin Long Yang, carrying 2 million barrels of Saudi crude to China, made a U-turn in the Red Sea on July 21, 2026
• ▪The tanker Rodos, carrying approximately 700,000 barrels of Saudi crude bound for India, reversed course in the Red Sea on July 21, 2026
• ▪The tanker New Prime, scheduled to load crude at Yanbu, turned back off the coast of Oman before entering the Red Sea