Commodity Vessels Plummet Through Bab el-Mandeb Amid Houthi Maritime Embargo

The Bab el-Mandeb strait saw a significant drop in commodity vessels over the weekend, with only 18 passing through on Sunday compared to 27 on Saturday and 28 on Friday. This comes as Iran-aligned Houthis declared a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia on July 20, expanding attacks on tankers carrying global energy supplies beyond the Gulf.

Two tankers laden with Saudi oil crossed the strait over the weekend: Suezmax tanker Lesvos and Very Large Crude Carrier Desh Vaibhav. The Lesvos was carrying around 1 million barrels of Saudi crude, while the Desh Vaibhav is heading to India's Sikka port.

The Strait of Hormuz, a crucial route for global energy supplies, saw traffic slow down with only 10 vessels passing through on Saturday compared to 19 on Friday. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported three tanker attacks since Saturday.