Houthis vs Saudi Arabia: $83 Billion Hasn't Stopped Them

Houthis vs Saudi Arabia: can Saudi Arabia actually beat the Houthis, and why the Red Sea war is already on your fuel bill, as of October 2026. In October a Houthi missile hit the main airport of Riyadh and another set part of Aramco's headquarters on fire. Saudi Arabia spends more on its military than any other country in the Gulf, yet it still hasn't stopped them. This year Saudi Arabia slipped out of one trap, the squeezed Strait of Hormuz, by pumping its oil across the desert to Yanbu on the Red Sea. Then the Houthis shut the back door at Bab el-Mandeb. We put every card on the table, check our own satellite pictures of Yanbu and the strait, and give a clear answer: can Saudi Arabia win? Should Saudi Arabia fight on, or make a deal? Tell us in the comments. Chapters 0:00 Intro: missiles on Riyadh and Aramco 0:55 The escape: Hormuz and the pipeline 2:33 Who holds the lock: Bab el-Mandeb 4:34 The long reach 5:58 Cards on the table 8:42 The people in between 9:32 Our answer 10:28 The bill: fuel prices around the world Sources Wikipedia, October 2026 attacks on Saudi Arabia airports: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_2026_attacks_on_Saudi_Arabia_airports TIME, who are the Houthi rebels (15 Oct 2026): time.com/article/2026/10/15/who-are-the-houthi-rebels-saudi-arabia-oil-airport-attacks/ AP via PBS, Houthis strike Aramco headquarters (14 Oct 2026): pbs.org/newshour/world/iran-backed-houthis-strike-saudi-oil-company-aramcos-headquarters-officials-say SIPRI Military Expenditure Database (2025 data): sipri.org/databases/milex Kpler, can Saudi Arabia keep its Red Sea oil exports flowing without Bab el-Mandeb: kpler.com/blog/explainer-can-saudi-arabia-keep-its-red-sea-oil-exports-flowing-without-bab-el-mandeb The National, Saudi Arabia shifts to Suez (26 Jul 2026): thenationalnews.com/business/energy/2026/07/26/saudi-arabia-shifts-to-suez-as-houthis-drive-bab-al-mandeb-oil-exports-to-near-zero/ Reuters via Baird Maritime, Yanbu flows again (29 Sep 2026): bairdmaritime.com/shipping/ports/saudi-crude-flows-again-from-red-sea-port-of-yanbu-as-key-pipeline-restarts Euronews, Houthis seize an island in Bab el-Mandeb (12 Sep 2026): euronews.com/2026/09/12/houthis-seize-yemeni-island-in-bab-el-mandeb-taking-control-of-the-strait ABC Australia, Yemeni government forces say the strait is secured (6 Oct 2026): abc.net.au/news/2026-10-06/yemeni-government-forces-say-bab-el-mandeb-strait-secured/107231438 CBS News, Trump's Houthi dilemma (13 Oct 2026): cbsnews.com/news/iran-war-houthis-saudi-arabia-trump-faces-difficult-dilemma/ TIME, Trump says the US may join Saudi strikes (10 Oct 2026): time.com/article/2026/10/10/trump-says-u-s-may-join-saudi-strikes-on-houthis-after-riyadh-airport-attacks/ AP via PBS, a Saudi diplomat on Iran and the Houthis: pbs.org/newshour/world/saudi-diplomat-says-iran-is-encouraging-houthi-escalation-of-attacks-on-the-kingdom Arab Center Washington DC, why Saudi Arabia returned to war in Yemen: arabcenterdc.org/resource/why-saudi-arabia-has-returned-to-war-in-yemen/ UN News, Yemen (14 Oct 2026): news.un.org/en/story/2026/10/1168591 Fuel prices: US EIA, UK government weekly road fuel prices, Natural Resources Canada, ADAC, OGRA via APP, Kenya EPRA, Japan METI, Delhi retail prices (12-16 Oct 2026); full table in the pinned comment Credits Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2026. Photo credits (our cartoon portraits are redrawn from these photos): Abdul-Malik al-Houthi: Wikishia, CC BY 2.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:عبدالملک_حوثی.jpg Rashad al-Alimi: Ali mamon, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rashad_al-Alimi_2022_(cropped).jpg Abbas Araghchi: Foreign Ministry of Oman, OGL-om 1.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Abbas_Araghchi_2026.jpg Sultan Haitham bin Tariq: Foreign Ministry of Oman, OGL-om 1.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Official_portrait_of_Sultan_Haitham_bin_Tariq_(2021)_(cropped).jpg Mohammed bin Salman: وكالة الأنباء السعودية, CC BY-SA 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:الصورة_الرسمية_للأمير_محمد_بن_سلمان_بن_عبدالعزيز_آل_سعود_(مقصوصة).jpg Mohamed bin Zayed: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, CC BY 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mohamed_bin_Zayed_Al_Nahyan_-_2024_(cropped).jpg Shehbaz Sharif: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, CC BY 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Economic_Cooperation_Organization_July_2025_-_1751655083_(cropped).jpg Abdel Fattah el-Sisi: Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in Egypt, CC BY 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AbdelFattah_Elsisi_(cropped).jpg Tareq Saleh: imo.un, CC BY 2.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tareq_Saleh_2024.jpeg Yahya Saree: Wasfi Akab, World News, CC BY 4.0, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2026.2025_Yahya_Saree_(cropped).jpg #Houthis #SaudiArabia #RedSea