A minister in Yemen’s internationally recognised government on Wednesday accused Houthi rebels of working under Iranian guidance to establish a system to impose fees for ships transiting the Red Sea and the Bab El Mandab Strait.

The narrow maritime artery has been a critical waterway for delivering vast quantities of Saudi crude to the international market, after energy exports were largely choked off by fighting in the Strait of Hormuz.

Information minister Moammar Al Eryani described “the move as a dangerous escalation aimed at transforming one of the world’s most strategic maritime corridors into a permanent source of funding for the militia’s military and terrorist activities”.

Eryani said the assessment was provided by recently obtained “confirmed intelligence” indicating that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards were helping manage the effort.

“The intelligence indicates that IRGC experts and advisers are directly involved in designing the technical and administrative framework of the project,” the minister added in comments exclusive to AFP.

He added that this would include “the establishment of a dedicated entity responsible for collecting payments from shipping companies and commercial vessels”.

Anxieties are growing across the Gulf that the Houthis are hoping to copy Iran’s playbook in the Strait of Hormuz by monetising access to the Bab El Mandab Strait — a move likely to send world energy markets into further disarray.

Last week, the Houthis announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and have since claimed attacks targeting Saudi tankers and oil infrastructure.

The blockade has threatened Saudi Arabia’s ability to export millions of barrels of crude a day, cutting off the kingdom’s only other maritime route following Iran’s parallel blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.