Houthis claim major advance in Yemen and tighten grip on Red Sea shipping lane
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Houthis claim major advance in Yemen and tighten grip on Red Sea shipping lane
Image source:
EPA/Shutterstock
Image caption:
The Houthis escalated fighting last week and have now reportedly taken over a strategic island in the Red Sea.
By Ella Kipling
and
Jaroslav Lukiv
Published 11 September 2026, 12:35 BST
Updated 25 minutes ago
Yemen’s Houthis have claimed a major advance on the western Red Sea coast, consolidating their grip on the key international shipping route.
The Iran-backed group seized Perim Island at the mouth of the waterway in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a source from Yemen’s internationally-recognised government told the BBC. It comes a day after the Houthis captured the strategic port city of Mokha from Saudi-backed pro-government forces, according to military sources.
A Yemeni military official told AFP news agency the Houthis now control the entire coastline.
The Houthis earlier said they posed no threat to international shipping but reiterated their threat to target vessels from Saudi Arabia.
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