Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen captured the Red Sea port of Mokha on Thursday and the strategic island of Mayun on Friday, extending their reach to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, two officials said. The advance renews risks around a major commercial route already disrupted by Houthi attacks, while the Saudi Ministry of Energy has shut a pipeline to the Red Sea as “a precautionary measure” after it was attacked Thursday.
Mayun, also known as Perim, lies off Yemen’s coast at the strait leading out of the Red Sea. The route had become an important alternative for Saudi crude shipments to Asia after threats of Iranian attack restricted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, but Houthi targeting of Saudi tankers has largely ended that workaround. The Houthis have sought to reassure shipowners that vessels outside their embargo on Saudi-linked shipping remain safe.
Saudi Arabia had increased use of a pipeline crossing the desert to Yanbu after Iran choked off most ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. Tankers loaded at Yanbu could travel through Bab el-Mandeb and continue east to Asian customers. The Saudi Ministry of Energy did not identify who carried out Thursday’s attack on the pipeline.
Other alternatives have also supported regional oil flows. In recent weeks, the U.S. military has guided tankers through the Strait of Hormuz despite Iranian demands that vessels use a vetting lane near Iran’s coastline. The United Arab Emirates has used a pipeline to Fujairah on the Gulf of Oman to bypass the strait. In August, alternative routes restored about two-thirds of the roughly 15 million barrels that had transited Hormuz before the war.
Houthi attacks on vessels in Bab el-Mandeb began in late 2023 over Israel’s war in Gaza, prompting many shipping companies to leave the route because of safety concerns. Overall traffic remains about 60% below its previous level, although the passage is still an important freight corridor between Asia and Europe.
The disruption has weighed heavily on Saudi exports. International Energy Agency figures show Red Sea oil loadings fell from 3.8 million barrels per day to 2.2 million in August. Overall Saudi supply declined by 2.3 million barrels per day to 6 million, its lowest level in three decades, according to the agency. Richard Meade, editor-in-chief of Lloyd’s List, said Saudi shipping had already largely moved away from the risk.