Yemeni govt forces retreat from strait in major setback

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Yemeni government forces announced today they were withdrawing from the area near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait to focus on a defence of their main base in Aden, in a major setback for…

Yemeni government forces announced today they were withdrawing from the area near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait to focus on a defence of their main base in Aden, in a major setback for the Saudi-backed campaign against the Iran-aligned Houthis.

The announcement signalled the apparent end of a six-week government counter-offensive ⁠to reclaim the coast near the mouth of the Red Sea, seized by the Houthis in September in a lightning advance that squeezed oil exports.

Today's announcement of a government retreat raises the prospect of new Houthi advances towards Aden, and underscores the predicament faced by Saudi Arabia in trying to stop the Houthis' drone and missile attacks on the kingdom.

The government forces have been based in Aden on the southern coast since 2015 after the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa.

Houthi gains in Yemen and attacks on Saudi Arabia and Red Sea shipping in recent months have strengthened the position of Iran in the wider Middle East conflict launched by the United States and Israel in February.

"The Southern Armed Forces announce the implementation of a redeployment operation for its forces from Dhubab Airport and the Bab al-Mandeb area, west of ‌Taiz Governorate," the main military force fighting for Yemen's ⁠government in the south of the country said in a statement.

"This step is taken based on the priority of securing the capital, Aden, and the neighbouring governorates, as well as strengthening the front lines and addressing existing threats."

There was no immediate response from the Houthis, or from Saudi Arabia, the Yemeni government's main international ally.

Yemen's decade-long civil war, which had been dormant since 2022, abruptly reignited this summer as a spillover from the Iran conflict.

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