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Official diplomatic channels across East Africa issued a firm response after Somalia condemns Houthi threats against Saudi Arabia following an escalation of armed attacks targeting commercial oil tankers in the Red Sea. In an official statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Federal Government of Somalia strongly denounced the Yemeni group’s warnings to impose a maritime blockade against vessels accessing Saudi ports. Mogadishu reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to state sovereignty, international law, and the fundamental protection of regional trade routes, emphasizing that hostile acts against merchant vessels threaten stability across the broader Horn of Africa and Gulf regions.
The strong diplomatic rebuke followed claims of responsibility by Houthi military officials for missile and drone strikes targeting two Saudi-flagged crude carriers, the Encelia and the Layla, in southern Red Sea waters. While Saudi transport authorities confirmed that the Encelia sustained an onboard fire without injuries to its crew, Houthi representatives declared that the strikes were part of a broader blockade strategy aimed at forcing commercial shipping away from regional energy terminals. Somali foreign policy officials warned that blockades or armed interventions targeting vital international waterways—specifically the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Red Sea corridor—pose grave risks to global fuel distribution, heighten freight costs, and undermine regional economic security.
As a littoral state along the Gulf of Aden with vital strategic and economic ties to Gulf partners, Somalia has consistently advocated for maintaining open, secure maritime channels free from asymmetric warfare. Government representatives emphasized that the safety of international commerce remains a shared responsibility, calling on regional stakeholders to adhere strictly to international maritime legal frameworks. As international naval coalitions maintain heightened surveillance across key maritime chokepoints, Somalia’s explicit backing of Saudi Arabia underscores growing Horn of Africa solidarity against security threats that endanger regional supply chains and international trade freedom.