Yemen’s Houthi movement has denied that it has shut down the strategic Bab al-Mandab strait, stating that its naval operations are strictly limited to a targeted blockade against Saudi Arabia, Al Jazeera reports.

Mohammed Abdul Salam, the chief negotiator and spokesperson for the group, dismissed claims of a full waterway shutdown in a post on X.

“There is no closure of the Bab al-Mandab Strait as some promote,” he writes.

“The position of Yemen, as announced by the Yemeni armed forces, is limited to a maritime blockade that only affects the Saudi side, in response to its siege of Yemen and its refusal to accept any fair approach to a solution that guarantees the security, sovereignty and independence of the Yemeni people.”