Saudi Arabia is trying to put together a group of about 50 countries to protect ships in the Red Sea from attacks by the Houthis, a militia group in Yemen. The effort was reported by Reuters and Al Jazeera on July 29, 2026. It comes after the Houthis declared a blockade — an attempt to block ships from passing through — on Saudi Arabia, which has already slowed traffic in one of the world's most important shipping routes.

The Houthis are backed by Iran and based in Yemen. In July 2026, they declared the Red Sea blockade, firing missiles and drones at Saudi territory and at ships in the area. The New York Times reported the declaration on July 20. Further coverage through July 27 showed attacks on ships and Saudi soil continued. Shipping data cited by Reuters on July 27 confirmed that maritime traffic in the Red Sea had measurably slowed after the strikes.

The economic impact could be serious. The blockade could affect more than 3 percent of the global oil market, according to the New York Times. That means oil passing through waters now under threat — enough to matter for both countries that produce oil and countries that buy it.

In the week before July 28, the Houthis said they attacked two oil tankers in the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia confirmed only one of those strikes. That difference is worth noting: it shows how hard it is to verify Houthi claims quickly, and how both sides may be using information to shape public perception.

The coalition is still in the invitation stage. Al-Monitor reported that about 50 countries have been invited to join the Saudi-led effort to counter Houthi threats to commercial shipping. Reuters and Al Jazeera both reported Saudi Arabia's intent on July 29, but neither said which nations have agreed to join, what the rules for using force would be, or when the coalition might start operating.

The Gulf Cooperation Council, a bloc of six Middle Eastern countries, issued a statement condemning the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. That gives Saudi Arabia regional diplomatic support, though the statement is a political declaration, not a binding military commitment.

A framework for Red Sea security already exists. In 2022, a joint statement called "The Jeddah Communique," published on the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs website after a Saudi-US summit, welcomed the creation of Combined Task Force 153 (CTF-153). That task force, part of a broader international maritime partnership, focuses on the Bab al-Mandab strait — the narrow waterway connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden — and on stopping illegal activity in the area. CTF-153's mandate covers exactly the waters where the Houthis are now operating.

The broader context here is that the threat has escalated quickly. CTF-153 was set up in 2022 to deter trouble in these waters. But the Houthi blockade declaration in July 2026 is a different kind of challenge: a militia backed by a foreign government openly threatening commercial shipping and backing it up with missiles and drones. The gap between what CTF-153 was designed to do and what is happening now suggests that Saudi Arabia may believe the existing task force does not have enough political weight, military power, or member countries to stop a sustained Houthi campaign.

The 50-country invitation list shows Saudi Arabia wants to share the cost and the political risk of responding broadly. A large coalition would spread the burden across many nations, including European and Asian countries whose energy supplies and trade routes are affected by disruption in the Red Sea. It would also make it harder for Iran to frame the conflict as just a Saudi-Houthi dispute, since a large coalition would cast the Houthi attacks as a threat to the whole world.

What we don't yet know is how the coalition would actually work. Would it escort ships through dangerous waters? Would it seize vessels breaking the rules? Would it run joint patrols under a new command? The available reporting doesn't say. The distinction matters: escorting ships carries different risks than stopping and seizing them, and both require clear rules for when force can be used. The Houthi claims of tanker attacks, with Saudi Arabia confirming only one, make it even harder to know exactly who did what — a problem any coalition would need to solve.