A previous answer discussed the legality of a blockade and the answer was that this is governed by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. On the signatories page this was created when Yemen was two states, The People's Democratic Republic of Yemen aka South Yemen and the Yemen Arab Republic aka North Yemen which is very close to the area currently held by Ansar Allah/Houthis.
In the section on The Yemen Arab Republic it says:
- The Yemen Arab Republic adheres to the concept of general international law concerning free passage as applying exclusively to merchant ships and aircraft; nuclear-powered craft, as well as warships and warplanes in general, must obtain the prior agreement of the Yemen Arab Republic before passing through its territorial waters, in accordance with the established norm of general international law relating to national sovereignty.
The fact that we have signed the said Convention in no way implies that we recognize Israel or are entering into relations with it.
The Yemen Arab Republic united with the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (commonly known as South Yemen) on 22 May 1990 to form the Republic of Yemen and the the Republic of Yemen lost actual control of the area 8-9 years ago to Ansar Allah/Houthis. Their control is not widely recognised internationally, though the US has recognised them "as a legitimate party in Yemen". I can find no reference to either the Republic of Yemen or Ansar Allah/Houthis making any changes to this position.
What is the legal situation with warships and Israeli flagged vessels using Yemeni waters?
