Yemeni government forces say they have 'secured' Bab al-Mandab Strait

What the report says

Yemeni pro-government forces backed by Saudi Arabia say they have secured the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the start of a broader offensive against the Houthi movement, according to BBC World News. A military spokesman said the Giants Brigades and National Shield forces had besieged Houthi fighters in the Red Sea coastal town of Dhubab, after taking its airport and cutting the route to the port city of Mokha. Houthi-run media rejected the claim, saying government forces had not advanced in the area overlooking the strategic waterway.

The BBC reported that the offensive has also expanded to other fronts, including around Sanaa, the capital held by the Houthis since the civil war began. The Saudi-led coalition said its aircraft had destroyed more than 300 high-value targets in support of the operation. Rashad al-Alimi, who leads Yemen’s internationally recognised Presidential Leadership Council, said the campaign aimed to retake all territory controlled by the Houthis and that de-escalation efforts had been exhausted.

The fighting comes after weeks of escalating attacks and counterattacks in Yemen and across the border with Saudi Arabia. The BBC said the Houthis had recently pushed along the south-western Red Sea coast and earlier seized areas near Bab al-Mandab, including Dhubab and Mokha. The conflict has deepened Yemen’s humanitarian crisis, with the UN estimating large-scale displacement and the government reporting heavy casualties since August. The strait matters because it is a major route for international shipping through the Red Sea.