In a statement issued by the Houthi-run Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center, or HOCC, the group said its so-called “safe transit service” was voluntary and free of charge. It also warned shipping companies not to make payments or share information with unauthorized parties, saying anyone demanding money for passage did not represent Yemen or the HOCC.
The denial matters because it follows a Reuters report cited by Al Jazeera that regional sources believed the Houthis were considering fees a week after declaring a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia. According to those sources, the idea had even been discussed with Iranian officials during a Houthi visit to Tehran earlier in July.
The Houthi statement tries to reverse that impression, but it also confirms that the movement continues to see maritime traffic as a lever of influence. The Bab al-Mandeb is one of the world’s key shipping chokepoints, linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and serving as a route for cargo and oil moving between Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
The report from Al Jazeera places the denial in a wider regional contest. A toll system in Bab al-Mandeb would echo Iran’s own efforts to charge ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, where wartime disruption has already changed shipping patterns. Yemen’s foreign minister-designate, Afrah al-Zouba, said earlier in the week that the Houthis were trying to “copy the Iranian model,” suggesting that the comparison has already become part of the diplomatic argument.
Saudi Arabia would be particularly exposed to any new fee system, because it has relied more heavily on Bab al-Mandeb as an alternative export route while Hormuz remains disrupted. That helps explain why Riyadh has responded by moving to reinforce maritime security. The report says Saudi Arabia announced a 14-nation coalition this week aimed at protecting freedom of navigation through Bab al-Mandeb, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
The HOCC message also tries to manage reputational damage. It tells shipping firms that any payment requests should be treated as unauthorized, implying that the Houthis are aware of how quickly rumors about tolls could affect freight rates, insurance costs and traffic patterns. That is especially important because traffic through the strait has still not recovered to pre-2023 levels after years of Houthi attacks on shipping.
The report notes that a United Nations expert panel previously said the group may have collected significant informal fees from shipping agents in 2024, although that was never independently verified. The fact that the fee allegations remain unresolved helps explain why the denial has to be read cautiously: in maritime disputes, a public rejection does not always mean an idea has disappeared.
For now, the Houthis say the waterway is free. But the wider dispute over who controls the route, who can secure it and whether any fee system might emerge is still very much alive.
