Yemen forces launch battle for Bab al-Mandab

Yemeni government forces backed by Saudi Arabia have launched an operation to recapture the strategic Bab al-Mandab strait region, a Yemeni military source said Friday, while Saudi and Houthi-linked accounts gave conflicting claims about the outcome.

The military source said government forces had begun a “major operation” supported by Saudi air power, but added that fighting was ongoing and advances were limited.

Saudi ambassador to Yemen Mohammed al-Jaber later wrote on X that “Bab al-Mandab has been liberated from the last elements of the Houthi terrorist militia”, without providing evidence.

Houthi-affiliated news agency Saba said an attack by government forces south of the strait had been repelled.

The Houthis, who are fighting Yemen's Saudi-backed internationally recognised government, seized coastline along the crucial trade route during an offensive last month, extending their control over all of Yemen's Red Sea coast. Yemeni government forces have been trying for several days to retake coastal territory captured by the pro-Iranian fighters.

Bab al-Mandab sits at the southern tip of the Red Sea. The supplied information describes it as vital for Saudi oil exports during the Middle East war as Iran blockades the Strait of Hormuz.