SANAA — The Iran-backed Houthis seized control of Yemen’s entire Red Sea coast and captured three strategic islands on Friday, in a lightning offensive that cemented their hold on a vital shipping corridor linking Europe and Asia.
The developments are likely to deepen the Middle East war’s impact on international commerce, as Saudi Arabia shut down an oil pipeline following attacks, and after months of Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Following a week-long offensive that has left hundreds dead, government officials said the Houthis seized the Yemeni side of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the southern gateway to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.
A local official with Yemen’s Saudi-backed government said on Friday that the Houthis had “completed their takeover of the Bab al-Mandab area and Mayyun Island”.
A government military official later reported the group had also seized Greater and Lesser Hanish, the last two islands in the narrow waterway not under their control, as well as all of the neighbouring Red Sea coastline.
“Everything that was under our control on the western coast has fallen,” the military official added.
A witness told AFP that gunmen were “deploying along the Bab al-Mandab shore and are driving around in military vehicles”.
The capture of the islands, particularly Mayyun in the middle of the strait, heightens the Houthis’ ability to attack Saudi tankers, which they have been targeting since July.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, has relied on the Red Sea ever since Iran’s Hormuz blockade choked off its shipments via the Gulf.
Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iranian supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, congratulated the Houthis on their “resounding victory” on Friday.
Oil prices have soared past US$100 (RM407) a barrel this week, while average US diesel prices topped US$6 for the first time on Friday — a potential headache for President Donald Trump ahead of midterm elections.
The Houthis’ military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said navigation through the Bab al-Mandab Strait was “safe” for all but Saudi Arabia following the latest advances.
