Yemen’s Houthis seize control of Red Sea city of Mocha

Aden (Yemen): Yemen’s Houthi group seized the strategic Red Sea port city of Mocha in southwestern Taiz province on Thursday amid a rapid advance toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a critical route for international shipping, a military official told Xinhua.

Houthi forces entered Mocha after hours of intense fighting, forcing government troops to withdraw southward toward Dhubab, a coastal area between Mocha and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the official said on the condition of anonymity.

The fighting in and around Mocha and other areas along the western coast has displaced thousands of families, according to the local official, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Meanwhile, the state-run Saba news agency said Saudi warplanes had carried out about 40 airstrikes in recent hours across Taiz, Hodeidah, Al-Jawf and Marib provinces. There was no immediate Saudi comment on the report.

The capture of Mocha and its port marks a major battlefield shift along Yemen’s western coast, bringing Houthi forces closer to Bab al-Mandab, the narrow maritime chokepoint connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden. Mocha lies about 70 km north of the narrowest point of the strait.

The group said Wednesday that dozens of “Saudi airstrikes” had struck areas under its control over the past 12 hours, as cross-border attacks and expanding ground battles pushed the country’s conflict into a new phase of escalation.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a statement on social media platform X that “Saudi enemy warplanes” had carried out 55 airstrikes over the past 12 hours, hitting Al-Jawf and Saada in northern Yemen, northeastern Marib and Al-Bayda in the centre, and the western provinces of Taiz and Hodeidah.

He warned that the strikes “will not go unanswered,” but gave no details on the targets, casualties or damage.

There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia on Sarea’s latest claims.

The reported strikes came a day after the Houthis launched a wave of missile and drone attacks against targets in southern Saudi Arabia, including energy facilities and a military air base. Saudi authorities said 73 people were injured and fires broke out at several facilities.

IANS