The Bab al-Mandab Strait, a 32-kilometer-wide (20 mi) waterway located between southwestern Yemen and the Horn of Africa. It connects the Gulf of Aden with the Red Sea, which is linked to the Mediterranean by the Suez Canal.

Shortly after the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, the Houthis began attacking merchant ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden with missiles, drones and small boats, saying they were acting in support of the Palestinians.

Four ships sank, nine crew members died and commercial traffic through Bab al-Mandab hit a record low as shipping companies diverted their ships around southern Africa.

Although the Houthis stopped their attacks in response to the ceasefire in Gaza last October, the number of transits through the strait has not yet returned to previous levels, according to data from the International Monetary Fund.

In response to the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia has diverted more than 70% of its crude oil exports to the Red Sea port of Yanbu.

About 4 million barrels per day (bpd) have been shipped from there in recent weeks, compared with about 973,000 bpd a year earlier, according to data from Kpler and Signal Ocean.

Total oil volumes transiting Bab al-Mandab also rose to 7.4 million bpd in June, or about 7% of global production.

Mohammed Albasha of US risk advisory firm Basha Report said it was not yet clear whether the Houthis would begin attacking ships heading to Saudi Arabia.

“Even if no ships are attacked, the announcement alone will likely disrupt shipping and create uncertainty in Saudi ports. The critical question remains whether the Houthis move from threats to direct action,” he told Reuters news agency.