Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have seized the strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha from Saudi-backed pro-government forces, military sources and residents have said.
The development has raised concerns over the security of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a major shipping route linking Asia and Europe through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.
The Houthis said they posed no threat to international shipping but maintained that vessels from Saudi Arabia would remain targets.
The group’s position comes as Saudi Arabia increasingly relies on the Red Sea for oil exports after the war involving the United States, Israel and Iran disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
On Friday, pro-government forces also withdrew from Perim Island, also known as Mayyun, in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, according to officials. Witnesses said Houthi fighters subsequently moved onto the island.
Mokha residents said Houthi fighters entered the city following heavy clashes with pro-government forces on Wednesday night, forcing many families to flee.
One resident told BBC Arabic that the takeover happened suddenly, with injured people left in the streets as residents fled.
Another resident said Houthi fighters were patrolling the streets on Thursday while government offices and shops remained closed.
“Everyone is afraid for their safety,” he said.
Many displaced families were reportedly heading east towards Aden, where Yemen’s internationally recognised Presidential Leadership Council and government are based.
One displaced woman told BBC Arabic that she fled with her children with nothing but the clothes they had on.
“We fled with our children and kept running. We have no bedding, no home, nothing with us. Everything was destroyed within an hour,” she said.
There was no immediate confirmation of Mokha’s capture from the Houthis.
However, the group’s Supreme Political Council said clashes had “ceased in the western coast districts after the expulsion of Saudi enemy mobilisations”, according to Houthi-run Al Masirah TV.
Tarek Salah, leader of the pro-government National Resistance Forces, also said he had moved his command centre on the west coast to a “safe location”.
He said his forces had paid “a heavy price” in recent days while fighting a Houthi offensive that he claimed was planned and supported by Iran.
A Yemeni military source also told AFP that Houthi fighters had seized Zuqar Island in the Red Sea, about 80km north-west of Mokha, after launching rocket attacks and a ground assault using boats.
On Friday, boats carrying Houthi fighters reportedly reached Perim Island after government forces withdrew.
A local government official told AFP that the Houthis had taken control of the Bab al-Mandab area and Mayyun Island.
Meanwhile, the head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, appealed to Arab states and other countries to help protect the country’s coastline and restore government control.
The Houthi Supreme Political Council said the group had the right to defend Yemen’s sovereignty and territorial waters while assuring the international community that navigation in the Red Sea remained safe.
However, the Houthi-run humanitarian operations coordination centre said its restrictions on Saudi vessels remained in place.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said Saudi warplanes had carried out 64 strikes across the western provinces of Taiz, Hudaydah, Marib and Jawf in the previous 24 hours.
There was no immediate response from the Saudi military.
The escalation followed a series of Houthi missile and drone attacks on southwestern Saudi Arabia.
On Tuesday, the Houthis launched dozens of drones and missiles towards southern Saudi Arabia, injuring 73 civilians and causing fires at several oil facilities, according to Saudi authorities.
The Houthis said the attacks were retaliation for Saudi air strikes on areas under their control, including a strike on a prison in Jawf province that they said killed at least 23 civilians.
Saudi Arabia has backed Yemen’s internationally recognised government against the Houthis in the country’s civil war for more than a decade.
An informal four-year ceasefire began to unravel in July after the Houthis announced a “maritime embargo” against Saudi Arabia and began attacking Saudi airports, oil facilities and tankers in the Red Sea.
The Houthis said their actions were in response to a Saudi blockade of ports and airports in areas under their control, as well as an air strike on Sanaa airport that they blamed on Riyadh.
