Houthis Declare Saudi Maritime Embargo, Threatening Red Sea Oil Route

Houthis Declare Saudi Maritime Embargo, Threatening Red Sea Oil Route

22:06 20.7.2026

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels announced a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia on July 20.

The group did not explain how it would enforce the embargo, which came as Tehran said it had returned to a "full-scale war" with the United States and as both sides battled for control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

The announcement followed the first exchange of strikes between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis in years, raising concerns over the collapse of a fragile 2022 truce.

The Houthis said the embargo was "based on the equation of 'an eye for an eye,' effective immediately."

If enforced, the blockade could disrupt Saudi oil exports through Red Sea ports, threatening one of the kingdom's main alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz as the escalating US-Iran war jeopardizes shipping through the waterway. That could further strain global markets that rely on the world's largest crude exporter.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric warned the threat risked an "even wider" regional conflict.

With reporting by AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-live-blog-trump-middle- east/33803414.html?lbis=463131

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