The United States’ crucial secondary oil conduit from the Middle East faces potential threats within days if insurgents aligned with Iran decide to escalate their involvement in the current conflict.
The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy has asserted its ‘complete control’ over the Strait of Hormuz. This vital channel, linking the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman, is a critical passageway for approximately 20% of the world’s oil. However, as tensions mount between the U.S., Israel, and Iran, there’s growing concern that the Red Sea, another significant oil transportation route, might also become a target should the Houthi rebels become involved.
These Yemeni militants, who are heavily supported by Iran in terms of arms and funding, have issued warnings about their potential engagement. Earlier this month, the Houthi leader, Abdul Malik al-Houthi, declared that “our fingers are on the trigger,” signaling their readiness to act.
Although the group has yet to officially enter the conflict, their participation could have severe implications for the global economy. It might also broaden the scope of attacks to include Saudi Arabia and U.S. assets in the region, such as the military base in Djibouti.
“If the Houthis enter the conflict, it really raises the stakes,” stated Adam Baron, a Yemen and Gulf region expert at the New America think tank, in an interview with The Wall Street Journal.
‘If the Houthis enter the conflict, it really raises the stakes,’ Adam Baron, a fellow at think tank New America, who specializes in Yemen and the Gulf, told The Wall Street Journal.
‘It pulls the Suez Canal and the Egyptians in, it brings Saudi further in.
‘They’ve got super useful real estate. If you are Iran and your aim is to build pressure by shutting down another key maritime shipping network, then obviously the Houthis are the easiest way to do that,’ Baron added.
The Red Sea could soon be the next oil route to be impacted by the war in Iran if Iranian-backed terrorist rebels join the fight (Pictured: A ship exploding in the Red Sea after Houthi rebels attacked it)
The Houthis, a Yemeni militant group that is armed and funded by Iran, have already threatened to step in (Pictured: Armed Huthis soldiers on patrol in June 2025)
If the Houthis enter the fight, it wouldn’t be the first time Iran teamed up with its militia allies.
Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese Shia militant group political party, jumped into the war to attack US and Israeli bases on March 2.
At the same time, the Houthis have floated the idea of joining, with its leader previously warning: ‘Regarding military escalation and action, our fingers are on the trigger, ready to respond at any moment should developments warrant it.’
And in a phone interview with The New York Times, a senior political official for the Houthis named Mohammed al-Bukhaiti said: ‘The expansion of the conflict to include other countries, including Yemen, is only a matter of time.’
‘Our hands are on the trigger,’ al-Bukhaiti added, echoing the statement of his organization’s leader.
The official slogan of the Houthis is as follows: ‘Allah is Greater. Death to America. Death to Israel. Curse on the Jews. Victory to Islam.’
The terrorist organization seized control of Yemen’s capital over a decade ago while fighting off an Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
More recently, the Houthis launched drones and missiles during the war in Gaza, leading to a severe maritime crisis as commercial ships were targeted.
Because of their attack, carriers were forced to take a longer route around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope.
A satellite image shows the oil infrastructure at Saudi Arabia’s western Red Sea port of Yambu
The Houthis also took aim at Israel when they jumped into that conflict.
In early 2025, President Donald launched a military campaign against the Houthi rebels in Yemen after they targeted US ships and regional shipping.
The campaign, known as ‘Operation Rough Rider’, saw US pilots and sailors get hit by a blitz of drones and missiles. It ended after nearly two months with a ceasefire.
Although the US and the terrorist group stopped their conflict, the Houthis continued to attack Israel and ships in the Red Sea.
Those attacks stopped after the Trump administration brokered a ceasefire deal last fall, ending a two-year war between Israel and Hamas – the militant group that controls part of the Gaza Strip.
The news of the Red Sea being the next oil route to be affected comes as Iran has taken control of the narrow Strait of Hormuz, which in turn has caused the cost of crude oil to surge to over $3.90 a gallon in the US.
Saudi Arabi has pipelines in the Red Sea that route crude oil across the peninsula to its port of Yanbu.
The path to exit takes ships past hundreds of miles of coastline that is controlled by the Houthis before getting to another checkpoint at Bab al-Mandeb, which links the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
Trump issued a furious statement on Saturday evening, demanding that Iran open the Strait of Hormuz or the US will ‘obliterate’ its power infrastructure
The Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant is Iran’s most prominent and largest nuclear power facility, located along the Persian Gulf
Trump issued a furious statement on Saturday evening, demanding that Iran open the Strait of Hormuz or the US will ‘obliterate’ its power infrastructure, the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant.
It is Iran’s most prominent and largest nuclear power facility, located along the Persian Gulf.
In a dramatic post on Truth Social, Trump demanded action in 48 hours on the strategically vital waterway.
Trump faces increasing pressure to secure the strait as Iran’s threats have effectively shut down the shipping lane, sending oil prices soaring.
‘If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!’ Trump wrote.
The president’s message marks one of his most direct threats yet – explicitly naming civilian infrastructure as a target, warning how the country would be plunged into darkness.
The post comes just a day after Trump had talked about ‘winding down’ the war and suggests that a military escalation could be imminent if Tehran does not comply.
