The Houthis lately declared a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia within the Crimson Sea, focusing on a number of tankers.
Printed On 28 Jul 2026
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group says it has fired ballistic missiles at a Saudi oil tanker, greater than every week after imposing a naval blockade on Saudi vessels within the Crimson Sea.
In a post on X, Yahya Saree, the Houthi army spokesman, mentioned the group had “carried out a army operation focusing on the Saudi oil tanker (NCC GHAZAL) for violating the maritime navigation ban” that the group had imposed on Saudi vessels.
He added that the group had used a number of ballistic missiles and compelled the vessel to retreat.
The UK Maritime Commerce Operations (UKMTO), a maritime safety monitor, mentioned a tanker reported an explosion whereas transiting the Crimson Sea, including that the crew is secure and no environmental harm was reported.
The Houthis seized the capital Sanaa in 2014 and have fought the internationally recognised Yemeni authorities, which Saudi Arabia backs, for greater than a decade.
On July 20, the Houthis introduced their maritime blockade, accusing Saudi leaders of imposing “an unjust and oppressive siege” on Yemen for almost 12 years, “plundering our assets and imposing a complete blockade”.
It went on to affirm “the appropriate of our nice folks to answer the blockade with a blockade”.
Second assault
The Houthis have also claimed an assault on two Saudi oil tankers transiting the Crimson Sea final week.
“We focused two Saudi oil tankers, named Encelia and Layla, for his or her violation of the blockade determination issued by the armed forces,” Houthi army spokesperson Yahya Saree mentioned on July 22.
The Saudi Press Company reported that the Encelia had been hit, citing an official supply at Saudi Arabia’s Transport Common Authority who mentioned all crew members have been secure.
The Bab al-Mandeb chokepoint connecting the Crimson Sea to the Gulf of Aden is likely one of the world’s most essential delivery routes, together with for oil exports.
Between Yemen to the northeast and Djibouti and Eritrea within the Horn of Africa to the southwest, the strait is simply 29km (18 miles) at its narrowest level, limiting site visitors to 2 channels for inbound and outbound vessels heading to the Suez Canal.
In 2024, about 4.1 billion barrels of crude oil and refined petroleum merchandise handed via the strait – about 5 p.c of the worldwide whole.
