Houthis Seize Strategic Yemen Port City, Threatening Global Shipping and Energy Supplies

SANAA (Terror Monitor) — Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen seized control of the key coastal and port city of Mokha on Thursday, further raising concerns over global energy supplies and international shipping.

The Houthi takeover comes as U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed hope that the ongoing war with Iran could end after the midterm elections.

According to Yemeni government military sources, the Houthis have further strengthened their position around the Bab al-Mandab Strait. Located at the southern entrance to the Red Sea, the waterway is one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes, carrying large volumes of goods and oil between Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

Sources said Houthi fighters began attacks on the strategically important Hanish Islands alongside their takeover of Mokha, further escalating tensions in the area.

The Houthis joined the current conflict on March 28 in support of Iran, launching attacks against Israel. However, they remained relatively quiet afterward. In July, they announced a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia, while their attacks on the kingdom’s southern regions increased significantly in September.

The global oil market could also be affected by the developments. After the Strait of Hormuz was closed amid the conflict with Iran, Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, increased its reliance on routes through the Red Sea for its exports. Growing Houthi activity near the Bab al-Mandab could therefore pose a new challenge to energy supplies.

Reuters, citing three Yemeni government officials, reported that the Houthis took control of Mokha Port on Thursday.

Mokha Port is located west of Yemen’s Taiz province, approximately 65 to 75 kilometers north of the Bab al-Mandab Strait and about 100 kilometers west of the city of Taiz.

According to Yemen’s Ministry of Transport, the port is only about six kilometers from the international maritime route connecting the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea with the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.

The Houthis also launched a major attack on Mokha Port on August 10, killing eight Yemeni soldiers and injuring more than 40 people.

Following that attack, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the operation targeted weapons depots belonging to Saudi forces in Mokha. The Yemeni military, however, said the attacks struck residential areas, while Yemen’s Ministry of Transport said civilian and economic facilities inside the port were also damaged.

The Houthis have been seeking to gain control of key ports along Yemen’s Red Sea coast, and their reported takeover of Mokha Port could further strengthen their control over the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The Houthis also claimed on Thursday that the Saudi Air Force had carried out airstrikes against their targets in Yemen.

Following the latest escalation, a state of emergency has been declared in Khamis Mushait, a city in southwestern Saudi Arabia.

After the war in Yemen began in late 2014, the port’s normal commercial operations were suspended. The Houthis subsequently captured the port during their advance along Yemen’s western coastal areas, but government-aligned forces retook control of it in January 2017.

The port was subsequently controlled by the National Resistance Forces.

In September 2021, the port was targeted in a missile and drone attack.

Meanwhile, although relations between Riyadh and Tehran have improved to some extent following Chinese mediation, the two countries have long been regional rivals, and deep mistrust between them remains.