Iran urges Saudi Arabia to end Yemen blockade as Houthis seize Mokha

Cairo,UPDATED: Sep 11, 2026 13:14 IST

Iran on Friday called for Saudi Arabia to end its blockade of Yemen and for talks to resume immediately, in its first public statement since Iran-backed Houthi rebels entered the Yemeni port of Mokha and stepped up their threat to a key global shipping route. The statement was carried by the state-run IRNA news agency.

Iran's foreign ministry said Yemen's sovereignty must be respected and that the country's problems cannot be resolved through a blockade or military alliances. It also said Tehran was ready to help support negotiations, as experts said the developments in Yemen could give Iran more leverage in any talks with the United States after more than six months of war.

The Houthis' entry into the Red Sea port of Mokha on Thursday brought them within 80 kilometres of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, an important alternative route for global shipping as Iran targets vessels on the Strait of Hormuz. It is the rebels' biggest territorial gain in years.

The Bab el-Mandeb, at the southern end of the Red Sea, is especially important to Saudi Arabia, a key US ally. Saudi Arabia's blockade of the Houthis has fed into the rebels' escalating attacks on Saudi shipping as the kingdom tries to move its oil out of the region. About 12 per cent of the world's goods usually pass through the strait.

Any disruption to the waterway could affect shipping and crude oil prices, which have risen again. In recent weeks, the Houthis have been targeting Saudi oil infrastructure and ships in the Red Sea.

Saudi Arabia, which earlier this week said it had always offered "opportunities for negotiation", has also said it has the right to defend itself in response to the Houthis' actions under the blockade the rebels declared on the kingdom in July.

According to Lloyd's List Intelligence, shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb had fallen by about 60 per cent since the Houthis began attacking some ships there in late 2023 while expressing solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. Shipping increased this year as Saudi Arabia looked for alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz, but renewed Houthi threats have "curtailed" that activity.

In a statement released on Friday, the Defence Council of Yemen's Saudi-backed and internationally recognised government strongly condemned the Houthis' renewed attacks on Saudi Arabia and said it would respond to the threats. It said a military operation by Yemeni forces would not be limited to a single front.

The sharp escalation in fighting risks ending a fragile truce that has largely held since 2022 and could push Yemen back into civil war. At stake are 40 million people in the Arab world's poorest country, where the conflict killed 150,000 people and pushed many others to the brink of famine.

The Houthis have been fighting Yemen's government since 2014, when they swept from their mountainous heartland and seized much of northern and central Yemen. Saudi Arabia entered the war the following year in support of the government. Iran's call for an end to the blockade and fresh talks came as the rebels' latest advance and attacks raised the risk of wider disruption at sea and a return to full-scale conflict in Yemen.

With PTI Inputs

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