Houthi forces in Yemen said on August 5th that they had attacked a Saudi oil tanker off Yanbu in the Red Sea, as the rebels continued to step up the maritime blockade they declared against the kingdom.
This is the 8th Saudi Arabian oil tanker targeted since the blockade began on July 22, a Houthi military spokesman said.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a video statement that the group "successfully targeted the Saudi Arabian oil tanker Wafa in the northern Red Sea, off the coast of Yanbu, with a number of ballistic missiles".
The Houthi forces declared they would escalate attacks in the northern Red Sea, as Saudi Arabia is redirecting its oil tankers there from the south to respond to the blockade. This blockade has threatened Saudi Arabia's ability to deliver supplies to the world, the leading oil exporter, after Iran blockaded the Hormuz Strait parallel, cutting off the kingdom's only remaining sea route.
Spokeswoman Saree said the group's blockade forced Saudi Arabia to redirect "its oil tankers to the north of the Red Sea". Therefore, this group will now "escalate targeting Saudi Arabian oil tankers in the north of the Red Sea to close all access points and prevent their movement".
With Iran closing the Hormuz Strait, Saudi Arabia's Yanbu port in the Red Sea has become the main export point for the country's oil, while the Bab al-Mandeb Strait has become an essential crude oil transshipment route. This narrow waterway connects the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean and through the Suez Canal, connecting to the Mediterranean.
According to data from maritime tracking company Kpler, Saudi Arabia's crude oil exports through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait increased 8 times in the period from March to mid-July 2026 compared to the same period in 2025. This figure jumped to nearly 100 million barrels in June, compared to 7 million barrels in February. In April and May, all crude oil exports by sea of Saudi Arabia departed from Yanbu port, according to Kpler data.
