Saudi-backed Yemeni forces take back the Bab el-Mandeb strait

Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces staged a lightning advance on Monday to retake the coast around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait^1,5. Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council said its forces had recaptured control of the strait less than a month after losing it⁷. Government troops also secured the Dhubab area overlooking the sea lane and the strategic port of Mokha³.

The Saudi-led coalition said it had forced Houthi fighters out of several key areas around the strait⁴. A coalition spokesman said it had secured “air protection” of the Bab el-Mandeb and destroyed hundreds of Houthi targets⁸. Around 100 jet fighters provided air cover as Yemeni ground troops pushed north along the coast in a flanking move². Yemen’s government forces, backed by Saudi airstrikes, had closed on the strait after launching the offensive⁶.

The counteroffensive began on Sunday, announced in a speech by Rashad al-Alimi, the head of Yemen’s presidential council, who said the government had “exhausted all opportunities for deescalation with the Houthi militias”¹⁰. The claims of control come from Yemeni officials and the coalition rather than from independent verification^4,9.

Why it matters to investors

Regaining the Bab el-Mandeb was one of the stated objectives of the operation, and the strait is a vital artery for global trade and for Saudi oil exports¹⁰. When the Houthis took territory on the Red Sea coast close to the strait, it handed them, and Iran, which backs them, powerful leverage over the United States, its Gulf allies and the world economy¹⁰.

Yemeni forces say the sea lane and the high ground above it are back in government hands^3,7, and the coalition says it has secured air protection of the strait⁸. The coalition measured its progress partly in Houthi targets destroyed, which it put in the hundreds⁸, and in the district of Dhubab and the port of Mokha changing hands³.

What to watch

Whether the advance holds is the first test, given that the Presidential Leadership Council lost the same ground within the past month⁷. The scale of the air campaign, with roughly 100 jets committed, indicates how much coalition firepower the position requires^2,3.

Watch also for confirmation from parties other than the combatants: the recapture is so far described by Yemeni officials and the Saudi-led coalition^4,9. The Iran-aligned Houthis have not conceded the positions in the accounts published on Monday⁹, and the coalition’s own statement emphasised targets destroyed rather than territory permanently held⁸.