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Satellite image of the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait at the entrance to the Red Sea. / Reuters-Yonhap

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi rebels are considering imposing tolls on commercial vessels sailing through the southern Red Sea, Reuters reported on the 29th (local time), citing regional sources.

This is an additional step coming a week after the Houthis declared a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia on the 20th. The move is seen as an attempt to open a new front in Iran's conflict with the U.S. and its allies, extending attacks beyond the Gulf on tankers carrying global energy supplies and other goods.

Houthi officials reportedly traveled to Tehran, Iran recently to attend the funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, where they discussed imposing tolls on the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait — which connects the southern Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden — with Iranian officials.

A timeline for implementation has not been set, but Iran plans to send an advisory team to help the Houthis establish an administrative body to collect the fees.

Chinese vessels will reportedly be exempt from the tolls, with the Houthis said to have agreed to this. China, the largest importer of Saudi crude, is said to have negotiated directly with the Houthis to allow its tankers to sail through the southern Red Sea without being attacked.

If the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait is blocked, Saudi Arabia would lose a key shipping route as an alternative to the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns over crude oil supply shortages. Indeed, a Saudi tanker was attacked last week near the port of Jizan in Yemen, with the Houthis claiming responsibility.

The Houthis were accused in 2024 of collecting fees from some vessels transiting the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden in exchange for safe passage. A UN panel of experts estimated in a report that same year that these fees may have totaled as much as $180 million (about 260 billion won) per month.

Sailing to Asia via the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait takes 16 days on average, but rerouting through the northern Red Sea, the Suez Canal, and around southern Africa takes 50 days.

                                                                                                          Park Jin-sook