Houthi bid to seize gateway to Red Sea leaves 120 dead
SANAA: A major offensive by Yemen’s Houthis to seize control of the gateway to the Red Sea has left more than 120 people dead, sources told AFP Friday, the country’s deadliest clashes in years. Fighting erupted on Thursday, after the Iran-backed Houthis launched a ground assault along with rocket and drone attacks near coastal areas, vying for control of the narrow Bab al-Mandab strait at the Red…
SANAA: Major clashes between Yemen's Houthi rebels and government forces near the Bab al-Mandab strait have resulted in over 120 casualties, sources report, marking the deadliest conflict in Yemen in recent years. The fighting erupted on Thursday, following a Houthi ground assault accompanied by rocket and drone strikes near coastal regions, vying for control of the strategic narrow gateway to the Red Sea.
Yemen, entangled in a decade-long civil war, recently joined the Middle East conflict when the Houthis dismantled a 2022 truce with the Saudi-backed government. Since then, the rebels have blockaded Saudi Arabia's maritime trade and repeatedly targeted its ships in the Red Sea, a crucial alternative export route for oil after Iran halted Gulf shipments by blocking the Strait of Hormuz.
The rebels now aim to tighten their grip on the Red Sea, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, disrupting vessel traffic since the 2023 Gaza war. The Houthi offensive seeks to seize government-held Mokha port city, currently under siege, and advance towards Bab al-Mandab areas. The rebels have occupied elevated sites overlooking government positions near the Red Sea and the city of Taiz.
The death toll reached 129 on Friday, up from an initial count of 81, according to AFP's tally. Yemeni military sources reported 66 of their soldiers killed, while Houthi-affiliated medical and military sources indicated at least 62 militants lost their lives. One civilian was also reported dead. Despite not controlling areas bordering Bab al-Mandab, the Houthis aim to seize the key port city of Hodeida north of Mokha.
They plan to capture the hills overlooking Bab al-Mandab and Mokha before launching an attack on the coast, according to a Yemeni official in Aden, the government's base since being ousted from the rebel-held capital Sanaa in 2014. The government has deployed reinforcements to Taiz from Aden on Saudi orders. The Houthi desire to control Bab al-Mandab or Mokha port grants them a strategic advantage in negotiating with the government and Saudis.
Iran's closure of Hormuz has heightened the importance of Bab al-Mandab as a transit route for Saudi Arabia's oil exports, the world's largest. The narrow waterway connects the Red Sea and, via the Suez Canal, the Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean. Following the July breakdown of a fragile Houthi-government truce, the rebels announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and commenced attacks on its ships and territory.
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