Reuters: Houthis Take Control of Mokha Near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait

Reuters reported on Thursday, citing three Yemeni government sources, that the Iran-aligned Houthis had taken control of the Red Sea city of Mokha, located near the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

Earlier, the agency had reported, citing four military sources within the government, that the militias were close to strengthening their control over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world’s most important maritime routes for vessels transporting goods.

In addition to Mokha, the sources said the Houthis were nearing a complete takeover of coastal cities along the strait, including the city of Dhubab, as the militias seek to control the entire Yemeni coastline overlooking the Red Sea.

Fighting between the Houthis and Yemeni forces has intensified over the past few days, opening a second front in the war amid the conflict with Iran and threatening global energy supplies. A United Nations-brokered truce in 2022 largely brought an end to a war that had lasted for years, but the ceasefire remains fragile.

The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is the southern gateway to the Red Sea, lying between Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula and Djibouti and Eritrea on the African coast.

The strait is one of the world’s most important routes for transporting crude oil and fuel from the Gulf region to the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal or the SUMED pipeline along Egypt’s Red Sea coast. It is also a major passageway for goods bound for Asia, including Russian oil.

Escalation with Saudi Arabia

The Houthi militias said on Wednesday that Saudi strikes had targeted the governorates of Al-Jawf, Marib and Saada, which border the Kingdom, as well as Taiz governorate in the south and Hodeidah governorate on the Red Sea. Hodeidah is one of the Houthis’ main strongholds and a key base for their broader campaign targeting maritime traffic in this vital waterway.

The Saudi-led Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen said on Tuesday that at least 73 people had been injured in four southern Saudi cities, including Khamis Mushait, as a result of new attacks launched by the Houthis against the Kingdom.

The coalition said the Houthis continued their attacks on national assets and infrastructure on Wednesday.