Yemen’s Houthi militants — an Iran-backed group that has controlled large swaths of the country’s northwest for more than a decade — have launched a renewed offensive aimed at taking control of a vital Red Sea port.
Yemen has been divided by civil war since 2014, when Houthi forces from the country’s north seized the capital city of Sanaa. The Houthis, a Zaydi Shia movement that formed in the 1990s, now administer most of what was historically North Yemen. This includes Sanaa, the densely populated highlands, and the Red Sea port of Hodeidah.
This accounts for the majority of Yemen’s population.
The internationally recognized government, supported by Saudi Arabia and based mainly in the south, holds Aden, much of the east and south, and the oil-producing area around Marib. Taiz, one of Yemen’s largest cities, remains split. Front lines changed little after a 2022 nationwide truce until fighting intensified in 2026.
The Houthis’ current holdings give them a long coastline on the Red Sea and positions from which they can reach the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the narrow passage connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
Earlier this month, the Houthis opened a ground offensive in western Taiz governorate. The operation targeted roads linking the city of Taiz to the government-held port of Mokha and sought to move closer to high ground overlooking approaches to Bab al-Mandab.
Clashes have been the heaviest in years, with more than 300 combatants and some civilians reported killed. Government forces later recaptured parts of Hays district in Hodeidah province and some heights west of Taiz, while Houthi units cut the Taiz–Mokha road at least temporarily.
