WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - With fighting intensifying across several front lines in Yemen, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels have captured the key Red Sea port city of Mokha, near the strategic trade route of Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Reports quoting Yemeni officials and witnesses said government forces withdrew from the island of Perim in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, and Houthi forces took control of the island.
The strait is the southern gateway to a key shipping route that links Asia and Europe via the Red Sea and Suez canal.
The Houthis are reportedly moving south towards Dhubab.
The capture of Mokha enables the rebels to control Yemen's coast on the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb, giving Iran another potential point of leverage in the Middle East war, media quoted defense analysts as saying.
Mokha is vital to controlling shipping through the Red Sea.
The fragile calm that had largely held in Yemen since 2022 has unraveled, the UN Security Council heard Thursday, with fighting intensifying across several front lines and the Houthis capturing Mokha. More than 11,400 households have been newly displaced since the fighting started on September 3. Houthi missile and drone attacks have also struck Saudi Arabia, wounding dozens of civilians, including women and children.
Speakers warned that the escalation threatens civilians, regional stability and international shipping through the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab. Yemen's humanitarian crisis is also deepening, with more than 22 million people requiring assistance and 18 million facing acute food insecurity. The continued detention of UN and humanitarian personnel is further constraining aid operations.
Delegations broadly called for an immediate de-escalation, protection of civilians, and renewed engagement towards a Yemeni-led, UN-facilitated political settlement. Speakers urged stronger implementation of the arms embargo and other Council measures
Yemen's Ambassador to the UN Abdullah Ali Fadhel al-Saadi said the Houthi escalation inside Yemen has displaced at least 6,145 families, or approximately 44,000 people. He warned that attacks in the Red Sea and attempts to advance towards Bab al-Mandab threaten international navigation and global trade.
Rather than repeatedly containing individual attacks, the international community must address their source, he stressed, calling for effective implementation of restrictions on arms, components, technology and military expertise reaching the Houthis.
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