WASHINGTON, July 22 — The Houthi movement, a Yemeni rebel group backed by Iran, has forced a persistent disruption of global commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb strait since November 2023, according to shipping industry records and international energy assessments. Attacks on vessels, which the Houthis say are aimed at ships linked to Israel in solidarity with Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war, have employed drones, anti-ship missiles, and small boats.
Major shipping lines—including Maersk, MSC, and Hapag-Lloyd—have rerouted around the Cape of Good Hope, adding up to 10 days and hundreds of thousands of dollars in fuel costs per trip. The Suez Canal accounted for about 12% of global trade volume in 2023, and the longer routes reduce effective capacity for oil tankers and container ships.
Insurance premiums for Red Sea transits have surged by over 400% since November 2023, the record shows. London-based marine underwriters confirmed the sharp increase, citing the sustained threat of Houthi strikes.
Oil market impact and military response
Approximately 12% of global seaborne oil transits the Red Sea, including crude from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Kuwait destined for Europe and North America. According to the International Energy Agency’s January 2024 Oil Market Report, prolonged disruptions could tighten oil supplies and increase price volatility. Brent crude futures rose from around $78 per barrel in December 2023 to above $80 in January 2024, with analysts at Goldman Sachs estimating a 10% risk premium if the crisis escalates.
In January 2024, the United States and United Kingdom launched airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen. The group has continued attacks.
The U.S. Navy’s Combined Maritime Forces, including Operation Prosperity Guardian launched in December 2023, has intercepted dozens of Houthi assaults.
Background of the Houthi movement
The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, emerged as a Zaydi revivalist and Shia Islamist political and military organization in the 1990s. Under the leadership of Zaydi religious leader Hussein al-Houthi, the group opposed Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh, whom they accused of corruption and of being backed by Saudi Arabia and the United States. In 2003, influenced by the Lebanese Shia militant group Hezbollah, the Houthis adopted their official slogan against the United States, Israel, and the Jews.
Al-Houthi was killed by the Yemeni military in Saada in 2004, sparking the Houthi insurgency. The movement has since been mostly led by his brother Abdul-Malik al-Houthi.
The movement took part in the Yemeni Revolution of 2011, joined the National Dialogue Conference, but later rejected the 2011 reconciliation deal. In late 2014, the Houthis repaired relations with Saleh and took control of the capital, Sanaa. That takeover prompted a Saudi-led military intervention to restore the internationally recognized government, leading to an ongoing civil war.
The Houthis have fired missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Following the outbreak of the Gaza war, they began firing missiles at Israel and attacking ships off Yemen’s coast in the Red Sea, saying they act in solidarity with Palestinians and aim to facilitate humanitarian aid into Gaza.
Broader geopolitical and economic context
The Houthis attract followers in Yemen by portraying themselves as fighting for economic development and an end to political marginalization of Zaydi Shias, while also promoting regional political–religious issues. The movement has discriminated against Sunnis but has also allied with and recruited them. The Houthis aim to govern all of Yemen and support external movements against the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia.
Because of the Houthis’ ideological background, the conflict in Yemen is widely seen as a front of the Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy war. The group is designated as a terrorist organization by some countries, and its human rights abuses—including targeting civilians and using child soldiers—have drawn widespread international condemnation.
The Houthis are part of the Iranian-led “Axis of Resistance,” a network of regional proxies that includes Hezbollah and other groups. According to analysts, Tehran’s provision of weapons, training, and intelligence has enabled the Houthis to sustain a campaign against Red Sea shipping despite U.S. and UK airstrikes. On the timeline, the group’s first organization, “the Believing Youth,” was founded in 1992 in Saada Governorate, initially a moderate theological movement that preached tolerance.
By 1994–95, between 15,000 and 20,000 students had attended the group’s summer camps, according to Ahmed Addaghashi, a professor at Sanaa University.
