G7 warns Houthis to halt attacks on Saudi Arabia, civilian ships — and tells Iran to stop arming them

Foreign ministers of the Group of Seven, gathered in New York for the UN General Assembly, urged Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels Monday (local time) to immediately halt attacks on Saudi Arabia and civilian vessels. The statement marks the G7's formal expression of concern over disruptions to international trade and energy shipments as the Houthis consolidate control over strategic positions near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a critical oil transit route in the Red Sea.

In a joint statement issued Monday (local time), the G7 foreign ministers strongly condemned the Houthis, saying attacks carried out in Yemen and against Saudi Arabia "are unacceptable acts."

The ministers urged the Houthis to halt all military operations and stop threatening and attacking civilian ships. They also called for an end to armed conflict and a return to political processes.

The statement came as the Houthis continue to hold strategic positions near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea and press their armed conflict against Saudi Arabia and Yemeni government forces.

The Bab el-Mandeb Strait connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and serves as one of the world's most critical maritime trade chokepoints. Ships transiting the Suez Canal pass through the strait, and any disruption forces vessels to reroute around Africa's Cape of Good Hope, significantly increasing shipping times and costs.

Houthi attacks have particularly disrupted Saudi oil exports in recent weeks, adding a new source of instability to international energy markets.

The G7 also directed a warning at Iran, which has been identified as the force behind the Houthis.

The foreign ministers said the Houthis' military actions are undermining international trade and destabilizing the global security environment, and urged Iran to stop providing the group with weapons and other military support.

Tensions persist around both of the Middle East's major energy transit routes — the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb — amid a protracted conflict involving Iran. The G7's simultaneous pressure on the Houthis and Tehran on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly has elevated maritime security in the Red Sea to one of the assembly's central security issues.