IRAN could order the Houthi rebels to block off the Suez Canal in a desperate last-ditch attempt to cripple global trade and force Trump’s hand, an expert has warned.
The armed militia in Yemen marked their entrance into the war by firing a missile at Israel overnight with their inclusion said to be the Iranian regime’s only remaining leverage over the US and Israel.
Their declaration of war on Iran’s enemies could have grave consequences for the entire world, experts say.
Houthi rebel camps are set up along the coast of the Red Sea and through their heavy arsenal – all funded by Tehran – they could begin firing at trade vessels on the mullah’s orders, it is feared.
Iran has already threatened to unleash its proxies on the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a critical chokepoint to trade between Europe and Asia, if the US deploys boots on the ground.
This crucial waterway leads directly to the Suez Canal and if it is blocked off by the Houthis it could plunge the globe into an economic crisis.
It would become the second major trade route shut down during the conflict after Western ships were banned from passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
A blockade of both passages would effectively mean that nearly half of all maritime trade would be at the whim of the IRGC – ramping up pressure on the US to end the war in order to restore global trade routes.
Policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran Jason Brodsky has said Iran’s mobilisation of its deadly proxy fighters is likely to be the regime using up the last “leverage it has”.
The Houthis have not joined the war as an independent actor but are being “guided by the IRGC”, Brodsky said.
Tehran is expanding the geography of the conflict to “inflict greater economic and political costs on the US”.
Brodsky told The Sun: “The Houthis’ strike on Israel was a warning shot from Iran that it can escalate further – with the attack representing the bare minimum of what it is capable of.”
The Houthis – who control much of Yemen – said on Friday they had their “fingers on the trigger” and were ready for “direct military intervention” if any new alliances joined the US and Israel in the conflict.
Houthi military mouthpiece Yahya Saree declared on Friday that the insurgents will hit Washington and Israel if they use the Red Sea to carry out “hostile operations” against Iran.
He also called for an immediate end to the blitzing of Iran, warning against any further tightening of what he described as “the blockade on Yemen”.
The group has now said it will remain in the conflict until all its goals are met.
Brodsky said: “Tehran saw what the Houthis were capable of in the maritime arena after the October 7 massacre in Israel, and it will apply lessons learned in Operation Epic Fury.”
During the war in Gaza, the Houthis wreaked havoc on international shipping in the Red Sea.
Last July, the world witnessed the group sink two giant cargo ships within days of one another.
Rebels also sank the bulk carrier Magic Seas in another hellish attack.
The dramatic strikes led to sea traffic dropping, while insurance costs rocketed in one of the world’s major shipping lanes.
If the Suez Canal was to be choked out by Iran and its proxies then it would bring with it major consequences.
It was closed off back in 2021 for several days when the Ever Given ship became grounded in the waterway at a perpendicular angle, blocking traffic in both directions.
The impact of the closure meant that up £6.5billion worth of global trade was halted for each day it wasn’t in use.
Crude oil prices skyrocketed and in Britain the delay caused a number of supplier issues from food goods to spare parts for cars.
A long-term closure, caused by a terror proxy, would have equally as tough consequences with people’s lives also at risk at being attacked if they try to pass the blockade.
It comes as Iran still maintains its iron grip on the Strait of Hormuz, paralysing the vital 24-mile trade route with deadly naval mines.
Meanwhile, Trump is pushing for a lightning end to war with Iran as he fumes the regime is “afraid” to admit it’s begging for talks.
The US president has told aides he wants the conflict wrapped up within weeks, with a hard deadline looming before crunch talks with China in mid-May.
He believes the joint US-Israel bombing blitz is close to smashing its targets.
But Tehran is digging in and publicly rejecting peace while, Trump insists, secretly scrambling for a deal.
More than 2,500 US Marines are closing in on the war zone as the defiant mullahs continue to ramp up global economic chaos by attacking their neighbours’ energy plants.
Pentagon chiefs are moving the battle group 12,000 miles to the Gulf of Oman with amphibious USS Somerset and landing ship USS Comstock.
And Trump could yet deploy 3,000 elite Airborne soldiers as part of a growing military presence.
