Why Iran-backed Houthi militants are pushing towards Bab Al Mandab as Hormuz disruption raises stakes
Red Sea route grows more crucial as Hormuz disruption hits oil flows despite recovery
Dubai: As the United States battles to keep oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz, another of the world’s most important energy chokepoints is coming under growing pressure.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants are pushing towards territory overlooking the Bab Al Mandab, the narrow gateway to the Red Sea, in an offensive that could give them greater ability to threaten a shipping route whose importance has risen sharply during the US-Iran war.
At least 81 fighters have been killed in clashes that erupted on Thursday after the Houthis launched a ground assault backed by rocket and drone attacks against Yemeni government forces near the Red Sea coast.
But the significance of the fighting stretches far beyond Yemen.
The Bab Al Mandab connects the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean with the Red Sea and, through the Suez Canal, the Mediterranean. Its strategic importance has increased as the war has severely disrupted normal shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Washington says US naval escorts have helped restore substantial oil flows through Hormuz, but the waterway remains dangerous and traffic has yet to return fully to pre-war conditions.
That has made alternative export routes, particularly Saudi Arabia’s route to the Red Sea, increasingly important.
Now the Houthis are fighting for territory that could strengthen their position near the southern entrance to that route.
Why Bab Al Mandab matters
Strategic gateway: Bab Al Mandab connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, making it a critical link between Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
Route to Suez: Ships using the Suez Canal to travel between Asia and Europe must pass through Bab Al Mandab. Avoiding it can mean the much longer voyage around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.
Narrow chokepoint: The strait is only about 30km wide at its narrowest, making shipping particularly vulnerable to conflict or disruption.
Oil lifeline: Its importance has grown during the US-Iran war as disruption in the Strait of Hormuz has increased reliance on alternative routes, including Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea export route.
Houthi threat: The Houthis already hold Hodeida, north of Mokha, and have attacked commercial shipping in the Red Sea. Their latest push towards Mokha and high ground near Bab Al Mandab could strengthen their ability to threaten the route.
Global consequences: Any serious disruption would hit oil shipments and Asia-Europe trade, potentially forcing more vessels onto the longer route around Africa.
Race for the high ground
The offensive is aimed at cutting supply routes to the government-held port city of Mokha and advancing towards areas close to Bab Al Mandab, according to Yemeni military officials.
The Houthis have seized elevated positions overlooking government forces near the Red Sea coast, Khokha and Taiz further inland.
Those positions are strategically important. Control of high ground could allow Houthi militants to observe government movements and potentially improve their ability to threaten supply routes and shipping.
Col. Abdul Basit Al Baher, an officer with the Yemeni government, said the most intense fighting had been around western Taiz and that he believed the Houthi moves were aimed at reaching Mokha, less than 50 miles (80km) from Bab Al Mandab.
Another security official said the Houthis were trying to cut supply routes to Mokha ahead of a possible push towards the port.
The Houthis, however, have played down the scale of the offensive.
Mohammed Al Bukhaiti, a Houthi political official, described the fighting as “nothing more than skirmishes and clashes” and said the group remained committed to avoiding an expansion of Yemen’s domestic front lines.
Government forces have meanwhile sent reinforcements from Aden to Taiz as they try to halt the advance.
Another shipping route under pressure
The Houthis do not control territory directly bordering Bab Al Mandab. But they hold Hodeida, the major Red Sea port north of Mokha, and have repeatedly demonstrated their ability to strike vessels using missiles and drones.
In recent weeks, they have attacked Saudi ships and declared a maritime blockade of the kingdom.
That creates a potentially dangerous strategic picture.
Even as US forces escort vessels through Hormuz and try to restore oil flows there, fighting is intensifying around the approaches to another waterway crucial to global energy supplies and trade.
The Bab Al Mandab is only about 30 kilometres wide at its narrowest point. Ships travelling between Asia and Europe through the Suez Canal must pass through it; the main alternative is the much longer journey around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.
Yemen’s war reignites
The offensive also threatens to plunge Yemen back into large-scale conflict after years of relative calm.
The Houthis seized Sanaa in 2014, prompting a Saudi-led Arab coalition to intervene the following year in support of the internationally recognised government.
A UN-brokered truce in 2022 sharply reduced fighting, although no comprehensive peace agreement followed and front lines largely remained frozen.
That fragile status quo began unravelling this year as Yemen was pulled deeper into the wider Middle East conflict.
The latest ground battles are among the most serious since the truce, with both sides reinforcing positions around Taiz and the Red Sea coast.
For the Houthis, taking strategic high ground could strengthen their ability to pressure government forces and threaten the approaches to Bab al-Mandab.
For Saudi Arabia and global shipping, the stakes are wider: just as traffic through one crucial Middle East chokepoint is struggling to recover, pressure is building around another.
-- With AFP inputs
