There is no activity at the Port of Eilat because of the increasing Houthi attacks on seafaring vessels heading to the port, CEO of the Eilat port Gideon Gulber said in an interview with Israeli news outlet Maariv.

“All activity has stopped due to the fact that ships cannot pass in any direction to reach the Port of Eilat,” Gulber said. 

The port has collectively lost some 50 million shekels (around $14 million) while continuing to lose 6-10 million shekels monthly, according to Gulber. 

Even though the port has faced extremely reduced activities, costs have remained consistent. 

The port, privatized in 2013 and purchased by the Nakash brothers, still has to pay salaries to its employees and taxes to the state, including property taxes, and continue operation costs, including electricity. 

“We have no income. We only have expenses,” Gulber stated.

The port still employs 110 workers in direct operations, while tens of security guards are still working there. Additionally, roughly 300 people are indirectly employed by the port, according to Maariv. 

The private port is starting a mass layoff process for its employees as it struggles with economic hardships. 

In March, a report published by The Times of Israel warned that the Eilat port was set to lay off half of its direct workers. However, protests at the port delayed the layoffs.

Moreover, compared to the 149,000 vehicles that entered the Eilat port in 2023, none have entered through it as of 2024, The Calcalist reported.

The Eilat port at the northern tip of the Red Sea has long been Israel’s gate to the east without having to navigate the Suez Canal. 

In addition, it mainly handles car imports into Israel and provides potash exports (a group of minerals containing potassium used as fertilizer) originating from the Dead Sea. 

The ports of Haifa and Ashdod, larger than the Eilat port, have received some traffic that was originally heading to Eilat. 

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels have launched dozens of drone and missile strikes against Israel-linked shipping since November in a campaign they say is intended to signal solidarity with Palestinians amid the Israeli brutal war on Gaza.

The Houthis have attacked at least 88 commercial vessels in nine months, according to a tally by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy think tank.

The Houthi attacks have prompted some shipping companies to detour around southern Africa to avoid the Red Sea, a vital route that normally carries about 12 percent of global trade.