Yemeni sources reported that the forces encircled the camp and are advancing toward the city of Al-Hazm, the capital of the northeastern province. Yemeni army spokesman Col. Majed al-Nuzaili said “specialized capabilities” have been put into use, which have helped destroy Houthi capabilities.
Meanwhile, media outlets reported a strike on the refinery of Saudi energy giant Aramco in Jizan province, the latest in a series of Houthi attacks that have left the oil facility, which produces 400,000 barrels a day, out of operation for weeks. The Houthis claimed dozens of ballistic missiles and drones were fired at the site Saturday, calling it revenge for Saudi drone incursions over Yemen. The refinery has not operated at full capacity since the end of July, when previous strikes hit the tank farm and the power complex.
The Houthis launched a broad assault over the weekend on the port city of Al-Mocha in western Yemen, but government forces repelled them. Arab media outlets are now reporting that the initiative has shifted to government forces, which are seizing territory from the Iran-backed terrorist group.
The port city of Al-Mocha is a strategic point. South of it lies the Bab al-Mandab Strait, which is vital for freedom of navigation. It serves as the gateway to the Red Sea, through which every ship seeking to cross west to the Suez Canal must pass. If the Houthis were to capture the strait’s coastline, they could disrupt freedom of navigation far more severely, in the way Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have harmed shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
According to news agencies, at least 129 people have been killed since Thursday in the Houthi ground offensive. About half of those killed are soldiers of the legitimate government. It was also reported that at one point, the Houthis managed to seize positions in Taiz province.
Iran’s IRGC directing Houthi fighting
However, the Saudi channel Al Arabiya reported that government forces managed to halt the Houthi attempt to advance along several axes. According to military sources in Yemen, the forces have made gains on several fronts, retaken positions, and killed dozens of Houthi fighters in battles in Taiz province. Officials assessed that experts from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards are involved in directing the Houthi fighting in Taiz province, which lies east of the port city of Al-Mocha, deep inside the country.
Furthermore, the Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reported that government forces have enjoyed territorial gains. According to the report, airstrikes against the Houthis have intensified while the forces have tried to cut off their supply lines. Now, the forces are announcing a significant achievement precisely in northern Yemen.
The Iran- backed Houthis control the northwestern regions of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, while the Yemeni government controls most of the rest of the country. The map below highlights who controls what in Yemen based on data from the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies, an independent think tank focused on Yemen and its surrounding region.
Yemen’s humanitarian situation
Yemen still suffers one of the worst humanitarian emergencies in the world, with acute malnutrition, food shortages, and infrastructure collapse affecting millions.
A decade of conflict, economic crisis and lack of social services and ability to work has pushed millions of children into acute malnutrition and scores of diseases, according to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Despite the fragile truce in 2022, which has reduced civilian deaths, access to the most vulnerable has been limited.
According to the United Nations, at least 17 million people, about half of Yemen’s population of 42 million, face acute food shortages.
News agencies
