Houthis Seize Yemen’s Mocha Port, Government Military Sources Say
PARIS, September 10 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) - Houthi forces have taken control of Yemen’s port city of Mocha, four government military sources told Reuters on Thursday, as fighting with Saudi-backed forces spreads along the coast toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The sources said Houthi attacks on the Hanish islands had pushed government forces and their allies south to Dhubab, which faces Perim island across the strait. They described control of Dhubab and Perim as essential to controlling the waterway.
Tarek Saleh, whose National Resistance Forces are allied with Yemen’s internationally recognised government, ordered his forces on the west coast to establish an alternative command centre in a safe location, according to Al-Jumhuriya television, which is linked to him.
The fighting puts a route used by Saudi oil shipments to Asia at risk. Saudi Arabia has been loading millions of barrels a day at Yanbu on the Red Sea to avoid the Strait of Hormuz. Houthi control of Bab el-Mandeb could disrupt those shipments further.
The strait forms the southern entrance to the Red Sea and carries oil, fuel and other commodities between Asian markets and routes serving the Mediterranean. The Houthis have already declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia.
Pakistan has conveyed a Saudi warning to Iran to rein in its Houthi allies following increased attacks on the Kingdom, Saudi, Pakistani and Iranian sources told Reuters.
A senior Iranian official confirmed that the message was delivered on Tuesday and said the response was that “Iran does not control the Houthis”. Two Iranian sources, however, said Iran had urged the group last week to attack Saudi Arabia, promising more funding and weapons. They also said Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders had travelled to Yemen to help coordinate the attacks.
The Houthis said Saudi strikes on Wednesday hit Al Jawf, Marib, Saada, Taiz and Hodeidah. Saudi Arabia did not confirm those strikes.
Saudi authorities said recent Houthi attacks on civilian and economic sites in the south of the Kingdom wounded 73 people, including women and children.
A UN-brokered truce in 2022 largely halted the fighting in Yemen but did not produce a lasting settlement.
Source: Reuters
