Yemeni Houthis attack port city of Mokha, threatening global shipping route through Bab al-Mandab

Mokha, Yemen – Yemen’s raging civil war has taken a dramatic turn, with the Houthi movement reportedly capturing the key Red Sea port city of Mokha from forces backed by the Saudi-backed government.

The advance brought the Houthis closer to the Bab al-Mandab strait, one of the world’s most important sea outposts. Located about 75 km south of Mokha, the strait connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and serves as an important corridor for international trade and energy transmission.

The development threatens to turn Yemen’s southwest coast into a new epicenter of regional conflict.

Military sources say the Houthis’ operation, which began about a week ago in the southwestern coastal region, has already killed hundreds and displaced thousands. The fighting comes as the movement’s conflict with neighboring Saudi Arabia has reached a dangerous new level.

The latest tensions spill over directly onto the border with Yemen. Earlier this week, Houthi forces reportedly fired dozens of drones and missiles toward southern Saudi Arabia. Saudi officials said the attacks injured 73 civilians and set fire to several oil facilities, temporarily halting operations at the affected sites.

The Houthi rebels say that these attacks are a response to Saudi airstrikes on areas of northwestern Yemen under their control. The Saudi attacks also included an attack on a prison in Hazm area of ​​Jouf province. At least 23 civilians were killed in the bombing, local officials said.

The Red Sea has become increasingly important to Saudi Arabia as the wider conflict between the US, Israel and Iran has effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, another key energy route to the Gulf. This has increased the strategic value of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coastline and made the security of the Bab al-Mandab strait more productive.

For the Houthis, gaining land along Yemen’s west coast could provide greater leverage over a maritime corridor through which much of the world’s trade and energy flows. The prospect of a powerful armed movement operating near the strait has therefore raised fears that Yemen’s civil war could quickly threaten international shipping and regional energy supplies.

The latest fighting comes after the collapse of an informal ceasefire that had kept violence at bay for nearly four years.

In July, the Houthis announced a “maritime embargo” against Saudi Arabia. The movement then stepped up missile and drone attacks against Saudi airports, oil facilities and tankers operating in the Red Sea.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia continues to view the Houthis on its southern border as a major security threat. The result is a conflict defined not only by battles for Yemeni territory, but also by attacks on critical infrastructure and sea lanes.

The Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, emerged in northern Yemen during the 1990s from the country’s Zaydi Shia community. Founded by Hussein Badr al-Din al-Houthi, the movement initially focused on opposition to government corruption, political injustice, and the growing influence of the Saudi ideology.

Over the years, Iran and its ties to Lebanon’s Hezbollah have also deepened, although Tehran has consistently denied controlling the Houthis or directing their military activities as a traditional proxy.

The first major direct military clash between the two sides took place in 2009 during the Sixth Yemen War. Houthi fighters entered Saudi territory after which Saudi forces responded with airstrikes. For Riyadh, the incident reinforced fears that the move could threaten Saudi Arabia’s southern border.

In 2014, the Houthis allied with Saleh and captured the capital, Sanaa. By early 2015, the movement controlled large areas of northern Yemen. President Hadi eventually fled to Saudi Arabia as the Houthis expanded their regional reach.

Saudi Arabia responded with a major military intervention. In March 2015, Riyadh launched Operation Decisive Storm, leading a coalition of Arab states in support of Hadi’s government.

The post Yemeni Houthis attack on the port city of Mokha, threat to global shipping through Bab al-Mandab appeared first on Daily Pakistan English News.

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