Yemen's Houthi movement is weighing a plan to charge commercial vessels for passage through the Bab el-Mandeb strait, a move that could shift their ongoing campaign of missile and drone strikes into a formalised system of revenue collection and access control over the southern Red Sea.

Regional officials told Reuters that the Iran-aligned group is exploring the imposition of fees on most ships transiting the strategic chokepoint, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. No timetable has been set, and the Houthis have not issued any public confirmation of the proposal.

The plan was reportedly discussed during a July trip by Houthi officials to Iran, where they attended the funeral of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. According to officials briefed on the talks, the delegation returned to Yemen accompanied by Iranian advisers who are assisting in the development of a proposed authority to administer the charges.

The stated objective is to normalise the collection of fees on international waterways while simultaneously increasing pressure on Washington, those officials said. Chinese-controlled vessels may be exempted from the charges, a provision that reflects separate negotiations between Beijing and the Houthis aimed at securing safe passage for tankers transporting Saudi crude.

The Bab el-Mandeb strait is one of the world's most critical maritime chokepoints, through which a significant share of global trade and energy shipments passes en route between the Indian Ocean and the Suez Canal. Since the Houthis began targeting commercial shipping in the region in late 2023 — a campaign they frame as solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza — many of the world's largest container shipping lines and tanker operators have rerouted vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, adding thousands of nautical miles and weeks of transit time. The United States launched Operation Prosperity Guardian in December 2023, and the European Union subsequently established its own naval mission, Aspides, to protect commercial traffic, yet attacks have persisted.

The toll proposal follows a parallel Iranian effort to impose mandatory insurance and maritime-service payments on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Washington this week characterised that arrangement as an extortion scheme backed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and announced sanctions against two companies allegedly involved.

The Houthis declared a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia on July 20 and have since claimed responsibility for attacks on several tankers linked to the kingdom. The group states that its campaign is retaliation for Saudi Arabia's role in Yemen's long-running conflict, which began with a Saudi-led military intervention in 2015.

Source: Splash247