Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces say they have driven Houthi fighters from key areas around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, potentially changing control around one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints.
Government forces staged a rapid advance along Yemen’s Red Sea coast, saying they had retaken territory around Dhubab and pushed north toward the port city of Mocha.
The offensive involved the Southern Giants Brigades and other forces aligned with Yemen’s internationally recognised government.
The government says its forces have secured the Bab el-Mandeb area, although the extent of the battlefield gains has not been independently established. The Houthis have disputed the scale of the advance.
That distinction is important because both sides have issued competing claims during the renewed fighting.
Bab el-Mandeb is strategically important far beyond Yemen. The narrow waterway connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and forms part of the maritime route linking the Indian Ocean with the Suez Canal and Mediterranean.
Control and security around the strait therefore have direct implications for commercial shipping and global energy flows.
The latest fighting follows renewed escalation in Yemen after years in which front lines had been comparatively stable.
The Houthis had made gains in the area before the government counteroffensive, increasing concerns about security along Yemen’s Red Sea coast.
The government advance has been supported by Saudi Arabia. AP reported that Saudi-backed forces launched a large operation to reclaim territory around the strait.
The Houthis, meanwhile, have responded with claims of missile and drone attacks against targets in Saudi Arabia. Those claims and individual battlefield reports require attribution because independent verification remains limited.
The immediate significance of the government offensive is therefore not that the wider Yemen conflict has been resolved.
Instead, government-aligned forces appear to have substantially improved their position around a maritime corridor whose security affects shipping between Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
For international markets, developments around Bab el-Mandeb will remain important because further fighting could affect shipping routes, insurance costs and the willingness of commercial vessels to operate in the area.
Pakistan Report illustration.