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Coverage · Iran–Gulf

Key event

The Houthi movement blockades shipping to and from Saudi ports

Jul 2026 Essential bab-el-mandeb-approach

What happened

The Houthi movement declares a blockade on vessels calling at Saudi ports at Bab el-Mandeb. Vessel traffic through the strait falls by about a quarter, and Saudi Arabia reroutes Asia-bound crude through the Suez Canal — turning a voyage from Yanbu to South Korea of about twenty-four days into one of about fifty-four.

Saudi Arabia's east–west pipeline exists to move oil away from a contested strait and delivers it to a second one. From this point the region's principal Hormuz alternative depends on a waterway that is itself contested, which is why the module treats the two straits as one coupled system.

Confidence: Moderate

WhenJul 2026
Wherebab-el-mandeb-approach
KindMaritime · Energy
Confidence: Moderate Sources: Established international media reporting · Congressional Research Service — Iran, the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz Methodology Corrections

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