US Embassy in Yemen Rejects Houthi Blockade Claims and Cites Port Traffic

The US Embassy in Yemen has rejected Houthi claims that a Saudi-led blockade is cutting off access to the country. In a video posted in Arabic, embassy spokesperson Khaled Wolfsberg said goods are still reaching areas under Houthi control. He also accused the Houthis of besieging Taiz, a city that has remained a focal point in Yemen's war.

The embassy said 272 commercial ships unloaded cargo at the Houthi-held ports of Hodeidah, as-Salif and Ras Isa between January and September 2026. It said the figures show that maritime trade and supply flows have continued despite the conflict. The statement also pointed to data from the United Nations Verification and Inspection Mechanism for Yemen, which monitors and facilitates commercial shipping to the area.

According to the figures cited, vessel traffic was strongest in January and March, when 34 ships arrived in each month. Even in July, the embassy said 25 vessels successfully reached the ports. The cargo included millions of tonnes of essential goods, with food making up a large share of the deliveries.

The embassy said March saw more than 737,000 tonnes of food discharged, while January saw nearly 630,000 tonnes. The exchange matters because control of Yemen's ports remains central to the country's war and to the movement of food and other basic supplies. Hodeidah and the other Red Sea ports are among the most important entry points for imports into northern Yemen, where the Houthis have held territory since taking Sanaa in 2014.

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Claims about blockade conditions are politically significant because they shape arguments over responsibility for shortages, civilian hardship and access to aid. The statement also comes against the backdrop of the Houthis' wider territorial control in western and northern Yemen, including the coastal area of Mocha, which they seized in an offensive in September this year. Taiz has long been one of the most contested cities in the conflict, and the embassy's reference to a siege there underscores the continuing humanitarian and military pressure around the city.

The UN mechanism's role in clearing vessels also highlights the extent to which commercial shipping to Houthi-held ports remains subject to international monitoring. What remains unclear is how the Houthis will respond to the embassy's figures and whether they will provide their own data to support their blockade claims. The available information does not resolve the broader political dispute over access, but it does indicate that commercial shipping to Houthi-controlled ports has continued this year.

The next developments to watch are any further official statements from the Houthis, the UN mechanism, or regional actors involved in Yemen's maritime routes.

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