Yemen may close key Red Sea strait amid US threats to blockade Iran: Report
Yemen may decide to close a key waterway connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden to help Iran tackle a US blockade of Iranian ports, an analyst has warned.
Ahmed Nagi, a senior analyst for Yemen at the International Crisis Group think-tank, told the Associated Press that the ruling Houthi Ansarullah movement is well capable of escalating the situation in their regional waters nearly a week after a ceasefire was announced to stop the US-Israeli aggression on their key ally Iran.
Nagi said the Yemenis would close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to double the oil price pressure felt by the US because of Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf.
“If the US moves to impose a blockade on Iranian ports and Iran starts feeling the pain, the Houthis are very likely to escalate in the Bab el-Mandeb,” he told the Associated Press.
The analyst warned that restrictions in Bab el-Mandeb would add “another layer” of pressure on the global shipping industry.
Yemen has yet to become fully involved in the Iranian fight against the US-Israeli aggression, although the Houthis have carried out several missile attacks on the Israeli regime weeks after the aggression on Iran began in late February.
The Yemenis have indicated they could restrict shipping in their regional waters, a policy they frequently used against Israel, the US and allies since the start of the war in Gaza in 2023.
US President Donald Trump said the US military will impose a blockade on all ships arriving at or departing from Iranian ports as of Monday evening.
Iran has dismissed the plans while warning that it would view any warships approaching the Strait as a violation of the ongoing fragile ceasefire.
Experts believe the blockade would trigger a major reaction from Iran and allies as they could further restrict the flow of energy from the region.
They say Yemenis could block Saudi Arabia’s oil exports from its western ports through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which has been an alternative route used by the Kingdom since the start of Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz.
Such a move could cause a fresh rise in international oil prices that have doubled compared to before the US-Israeli aggression on Iran in late February.
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