A top adviser to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has threatened that Iranian allies could shut the Bab al-Mandeb shipping route as Tehran has effectively done with the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n
The Bab-al-Mandeb connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and is a crucial waterway for global oil trade. Its importance has increased since Iran\u2019s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz \u2013 through which 20 percent of the world\u2019s oil and gas is shipped in peacetime.<\/p>\n
Ali Akbar Velayati, a former Iranian foreign minister and veteran diplomat known for his influence within the establishment, warned on Sunday on X that \u201cthe unified command of the Resistance front views Bab al-Mandeb as it does Hormuz\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the White House dares to repeat its foolish mistakes, it will soon realize that the flow of global energy and trade can be disrupted with a single move,\u201d Velayati wrote. Iran\u2019s state-owned Press TV subsequently confirmed his warning.<\/p>\n
It follows US President Donald Trump\u2019s threats to bomb Iran\u2019s power plants and bridges from Wednesday this week if Tehran does not agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has said that Hormuz is open to ships from countries that negotiate safe passage \u2013 apart from the US and Israel. Trump has previously threatened to bomb Iran\u2019s desalination plants.<\/p>\n
But if Bab al-Mandeb were closed, it would impact more than the ongoing war \u2013 it could compound the global energy supply crisis<\/a> sparked by the conflict, deepening the economic turmoil being felt in factories, kitchens and at petrol stations around the world.<\/p>\n The strait<\/a> is between Yemen to its northeast and Djibouti and Eritrea in the Horn of Africa to the southwest.<\/p>\n It connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, which then extends into the Indian Ocean. It is 29km (18 miles) wide at its narrowest point, limiting traffic to two channels for inbound and outbound shipments and is effectively controlled by the Iran-backed Houthis.<\/p>\n The Yemen-based group is a central part of Iran\u2019s so-called \u201cAxis of Resistance\u201d \u2013 a coalition of groups ideologically or tactically aligned with Tehran which Velayati appears to have been referring to in his Sunday post on X.<\/p>\n It is one of the world\u2019s most important shipping routes.<\/p>\n The strait is a vital route through which Saudi Arabia sends its oil to Asia. When the Strait of Hormuz is open, it is also a crucial passageway for Gulf states besides Saudi Arabia to export their crude oil, gas and other fuel to Europe\u00a0<\/span>via the Suez Canal or the Sumed (Suez-Mediterranean) Pipeline on Egypt\u2019s Red Sea coast.<\/span><\/p>\n In 2024, about 4.1 billion barrels of crude oil and refined petroleum products passed through the strait \u2013 that\u2019s 5 percent of the global total.<\/p>\n If Bab al-Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz were both shut, that would block 25 percent \u2013 or a quarter of the world\u2019s oil and gas supply.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not just oil: About 10 percent of global trade sails through the Bab al-Mandeb, including containers shipped from China, India and other Asian countries to Europe.<\/p>\n With the Strait of Hormuz shut, Bab al-Mandeb\u2019s importance has only grown.<\/p>\n Saudi Arabia, which has traditionally also relied principally on the Hormuz strait to export its oil, has increasingly turned to its Red Sea port of Yanbu to ship crude out through the Bab al-Mandeb.<\/p>\n For this, it has turned to the East West Pipeline<\/a>, running from the Abqaiq oil processing centre close to the Gulf to Yanbu. The 1,200km (745-mile) pipeline is operated by Saudi oil giant Aramco.<\/p>\n Where the East West Pipeline transferred an average of 770,000 bpd to the Red Sea coast in January and February, according to energy intelligence firm Kpler, Saudi Arabia cranked up its use in March, when Hormuz was shut. By the end of March, oil was flowing at the pipeline\u2019s capacity of 7 million bpd \u2013 more than ever before.<\/p>\n The Houthis have already shown they can do it. During Israel\u2019s genocidal war on Gaza, they blocked the Bab al-Mandeb for what they described as ships associated with Israel or the US.<\/p>\n Because of frequent attacks on shipping, insurers refused to offer reducing traffic. In May 2025, the US and the Houthis agreed to a ceasefire and the Yemeni group has since opened up the Bab al-Mandeb again.<\/p>\n Recent days have shown how easy it would be for the Houthis to repeat the disruption during the war on Gaza.<\/p>\n Since late March, the Houthis have fired missiles and drones at Israel, pointing to their effective entry into the war \u2013 for now, against Israel, not the US.<\/p>\n But Nabeel Khoury, a former US diplomat, told Al Jazeera that the missile attacks launched by the Houthis against Israel amounted to \u201ctoken participation, not full participation\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThey have fired a couple of missiles as a warning because of all the talk of potential escalation. There are US troops on their way to the region. There\u2019s been talk that if there is no agreement, there might be a full-scale attack on Iran as has not been seen so far,\u201d the former deputy chief of mission in Yemen told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n If the Houthis truly wanted to enter the war, their weapon would be the blockage of the Bab al-Mandeb.<\/p>\n \u201cAll they have to do is fire at a couple of ships coming through, and that would lead to the arrest of all commercial shipping through the Red Sea,\u201d he said. \u201cThat would be a red line, and then you would see attacks against Yemen [from the US and Israel] very quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n Elisabeth Kendall, a Middle East specialist and the president of Girton College at Cambridge University, told Al Jazeera that if the Red Sea strait is blocked, it would create a \u201cnightmare scenario\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause if you have restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz at the same time as restrictions are escalating in the Bab al-Mandeb, then you really will disrupt, if not cripple, trade toward Europe. So this is a knife edge, really, depending on what happens next,\u201d she told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n Kendall, however, said that while this was a \u201csweet spot\u201d for the Houthis, the Yemeni group might not want to \u201cprovoke a Saudi or indeed a broader response.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"INTERACTIVE](\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/INTERACTIVE-Bab-al-Mandeb-strait-red-sea-map-route-shipping-map-1774773769.png?quality=80\")
<\/p>\nWhere is the Bab al-Mandeb?<\/h2>\n
Why is the Bab al-Mandeb important for the energy trade?<\/h2>\n
![\"mandeb\"](\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/AP26095432088817-1775475988.jpg?w=770&resize=770%2C513&quality=80\")
How could Iran and its allies shut it?<\/h2>\n
What would a closure of the Bab al-Mandeb mean for the world?<\/h2>\n
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