Yemen’s Houthis Say They’ll Target Tankers in Northern Red Sea

Yemen’s Houthi militant group said it would attack Saudi oil tankers in the northern Red Sea, a potential fresh escalation in its attacks on shipping. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the move was a result of the kingdom diverting ships away from the Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint to the south of the waterway. The group said last month that it would begin attacking Saudi vessels in retaliation for a blockade on Yemeni ports. That added a new risk to global energy markets, with the Iran war already restricting flows through the Strait of Hormuz and Saudi Arabia relying on its Red Sea port of Yanbu to keep oil exports flowing. Since announcing the attacks, the Houthis have targeted several ships, but so far the damage has been relatively limited. Saudi Aramco said Tuesday that the Houthi blockade has yet to dent export volumes and that the kingdom is working on contingency plans to keep its oil flowing. Photograph: A Yemeni protester carries a mock missile during a protest against the continued Saudi-led blockade on Yemen on July 31, 2026; photo credit: Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Related: Houthis’ Red Sea Attacks Prompt London Insurers to Widen High-Risk Zone Copyright 2026 Bloomberg. Was this article valuable? Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article. Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it. Here are more articles you may enjoy.