Eilat Port Shuts Down Permanently as Houthi Blockade Strangles Israeli Trade

Israel’s Port of Eilat, a critical Red Sea trade hub, will permanently cease operations on July 21, 2025, crippled by a Houthi naval blockade and mounting debts exacerbated by the economic fallout from Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack, which killed 1,200 and took 251 hostages. Established in 1952 and operational since 1957, the port, located at the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba near Jordan and Egypt, has been Israel’s gateway for trade with Asia, East Africa, and Australia, handling 50% of the nation’s vehicle imports and exporting potash and phosphates for Israel Chemicals Limited (ICL). Since November 2023, Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have targeted Israel-linked ships in the Red Sea, forcing major shipping firms like Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd to reroute vessels around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, adding 2–4 weeks and up to $1 million per voyage in costs. A September 2024 Houthi drone attack on the port killed two people, further deterring maritime traffic.

Port activity plummeted, with ship arrivals dropping from 134 in 2023 to just six by May 2025, and vehicle imports falling from 150,000 to zero in 2024 as importers shifted to Ashdod and Haifa. Revenue collapsed from 212 million shekels ($63 million) in 2023 to 42 million shekels ($12.5 million) in 2024. The Eilat Municipality froze the port’s bank accounts over 10 million shekels ($3 million) in unpaid taxes, prompting the shutdown. “Due to the shutdown of the Port of Eilat and its deteriorating financial situation amid the ongoing crisis, the Eilat Municipality has notified port management of the seizure of all bank accounts over unpaid debts,” stated Israel’s National Emergency Authority. A 15 million shekel ($4.5 million) government grant in June 2025, recognizing the port as a “strategic national asset,” failed to avert closure. The shutdown disrupts Israel Navy logistics and ICL’s mineral exports, while the Europe Asia Pipeline Company faces operational challenges. Social media posts on X decried the closure as a “Houthi victory,” with one user stating, “Eilat’s collapse shows Iran’s proxies are choking Israel’s economy.”