Yemen's Houthis have launched a major ground assault around the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea chokepoint that has become vital for Saudi oil exports during the Middle East war. With hundreds dead in fighting, and the Houthis exchanging strikes and counter-strikes with Saudi Arabia, the strait sits at the southern tip of the Red Sea, connecting it with the Gulf of Aden in the Indian Ocean. Known as the 'Gate of Tears' in Arabic because of its history of shipwrecks, it is about 100 kilometres (62 miles) long and just 30 kilometres (18 miles) wide at its narrowest point, separating Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula from Djibouti and Eritrea on the Horn of Africa.
With the Red Sea linking maritime trade between Europe and Asia, the strait is usually one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. Oil tankers and cargo ships use it to reach the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal, shortening journeys between Asia and Europe and North America by thousands of kilometres. In 2024, as the Houthis attacked Red Sea shipping during the Gaza war, Suez Canal traffic fell sharply and has yet to recover, according to IMF PortWatch data. Total transits dropped from 26,895 vessels in 2023, or 73.7 per day, to 14,498 in 2024 and 14,070 in 2025.
The Houthis, claiming to act in solidarity with Palestinians, targeted ships they said had links to Israel. Average transits for January-August 2026 stood at 40.8 vessels per day, still a little more than half the pre-crisis level. The Houthis do not control the coastal areas bordering Bab al-Mandab, but they hold the large port city of Hodeida further north. On Monday, a Yemeni military source stated that since declaring a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia in July, the Houthis have repeatedly attacked Saudi ships in the Red Sea, though they have denied seeking to close the strait entirely.
Analysis indicates the Houthis are attacking Saudi oil export capabilities to raise political and economic costs, forcing Riyadh to halt military operations. Andreas Krieg, a security expert at King's College London, warned that the biggest danger is not necessarily the physical closure of Bab al-Mandab, but persistent uncertainty, which will suppress Suez traffic and impose significant costs on regional economies.