Yemeni government warns of Houthi plans to control the Bab al-Mandab coast

Yemeni Media Minister Moamer al-Eryani said that Iran-backed Houthi rebels are planning to control coastal areas adjacent to the Bab al-Mandab strait, which would threaten the vital shipping lane.

Al-Eryani told AFP, “Our confirmed information indicates that the Houthi militia, under the direction and support of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, is working to create conditions for controlling the Bab al-Mandab strait by expanding along the western coast and attempting to seize Yemen’s strategic islands in the Red Sea.”

Although the Houthis do not directly control areas overlooking Bab al-Mandab, they control the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah and have repeatedly attacked shipping traffic from their strongholds in the north.

Brigadier General Sadiq Duwaid, spokesperson for the “National Resistance Forces,” a government-aligned force deployed along the western coast, told AFP that the Houthis are “working tirelessly to establish a foothold at Bab al-Mandab.”

He added that their renewed attacks aim “to establish a presence on the shores of Bab al-Mandab and turn it into a situation similar to that of the Strait of Hormuz.”

Three Houthi military sources told AFP that the rebels are “preparing to carry out a major military operation to seize areas under government control along the western coast, stretching from Al-Khoukha through Al-Mukha to Bab al-Mandab,” areas located south of Hodeidah.