Iran-backed Yemeni Houthi rebels threaten to close Bab al-Mandab strait off Yemen’s coast. The warning comes as Iran’s military has once again closed another key sea route, the Strait of Hormuz, citing the US decision to continue its blockade. TASR informs about it according to the report of the DPA agency.
“If Sana’a decides to close the Bab al-Mandab Strait, then all of humanity will be too powerless to open it.” said a high-ranking representative of the Houthis on the X social network on Saturday evening. At the same time, he called on US President Donald Trump to immediately stop “all practices and policies” that hinder peace.
This sea route in the Red Sea connects Europe with Asia via the Suez Canalone of the most important international maritime trade routes. According to Türkiye Today, it is one of the world’s most important shipping routes for commodities, especially crude oil and fuel shipments from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea, as well as goods bound for Asia.
DPA reminds that the Yemeni rebels are part of the so-called of the Iranian “axis of resistance” – a network of pro-Iranian regional armed groups. The Houthis fired several rockets at Israel during the Middle East war that erupted after the US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28. However, they refrained from resuming attacks on shipping.
Shiite rebels have shelled ships linked to Israel or its allies in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since the Gaza war broke out in October 2023. They described the attacks as an expression of solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. These attacks stopped after a cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in October 2025.
