The Saudi-led coalition said on Monday it would respond “firmly and forcefully” to recent threats by the Houthi movement, in its first official reaction after the Iran-aligned group announced a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia.
The statement was issued by Major General Turki Al-Maliki, spokesperson for the Joint Forces Command of the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen.
Al-Maliki said the coalition had begun measures to protect its vessels transiting the Bab al-Mandab Strait, adding that any Houthi threats against passing ships would be met “firmly and forcefully”.
He said the Houthi threats violate international law and falls under act of maritime piracy.
Al-Maliki added that the measures taken by the coalition were in line with international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to protect coalition vessels in Bab al-Mandab Strait.
He also dismissed claims that Yemen’s ports and airports had been closed as “misleading”, saying that more than 300 commercial ships entered the Houthi-controlled ports of Hodeidah, Salif and Ras Isa during the first half of 2026, carrying food, fuel and construction materials.
READ: Yemen’s Houthis declare ‘maritime blockade’ on Saudi Arabia
