Iran urges Houthis to threaten Red Sea shipping as US expands strikes on Iranian energy sites

Iran is signaling that the Houthi rebels could target commercial shipping in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait if the United States expands its airstrikes to Iranian energy facilities, two senior Iranian officials and a regional source told Reuters on July 16. An unnamed source close to the Houthis said the group has moved missile and drone assets to the strait and is awaiting orders.

IRGC Quds Force commander Brigadier General Esmail Ghaani has previously warned that the Houthis could launch a new campaign against Red Sea traffic. The threat comes amid reports that the United States may intensify operations against Iran, with President Donald Trump recently indicating a willingness to strike “power plants and bridges.”

The Houthis have not closed the Bab al-Mandeb despite past threats. Their leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, said on July 16 that the group continues to block Israeli vessels but did not mention a broader closure to commercial ships. The risk of an escalation against maritime traffic remains high.

Tensions between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia have also risen. Abdul Malik accused Saudi Arabia of “embroiling itself” in the conflict after a recent exchange of fire over Iran’s attempt to land a flight at Sanaa Airport, and warned of drone and missile attacks on Saudi oil facilities if the kingdom attacks the Houthis again. Saudi officials said the kingdom is closely monitoring the Iran-Houthi coordination and has rerouted 70 percent of its oil exports to the Red Sea port of Yanbu to avoid potential strikes in the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. forces have continued strikes on Iranian targets across the country, including a hangar at Semnan Airport, sites in Sistan and Baluchistan, and naval and coastal installations near Bandar Abbas and Greater Tunb Island. A U.S. official described the operations as “shaping operations” aimed at degrading Iranian defenses.

In response, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and regular army launched drone and missile attacks on U.S. bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan on July 15-16; all three countries reported intercepting the projectiles.

Separately, Iran is reportedly supplying Lebanese Hezbollah with first-person-view (FPV) fiber-optic drones and related components. Syrian forces seized a shipment of such weapons near the Iraq-Syria border on July 7, which included hundreds of FPV drones, Chinese-made fiber-optic spools and Iranian-manufactured anti-tank warheads. Analysts note that some of the equipment may have originated from Russian manufacturers, although confirmation is lacking.

In Iraq, drones believed to be Iranian struck an oil tanker at the Basra Oil Terminal on July 16, briefly halting exports, and another drone hit al-Faw port the day before. No casualties were reported. An Iranian-backed militia denied involvement in a separate drone attack on the U.S. consulate and airport in Erbil on July 15, with Iraqi air defenses intercepting the devices.

The developments underscore a widening regional confrontation in which Iran leverages proxy forces to threaten maritime routes while the United States expands its military pressure on Iranian infrastructure.