The Houthi militia in Yemen has continued its advance by taking control of two strategically important islands in the southern Red Sea, further strengthening its position along a crucial international shipping route, according to Yemeni government officials and a Houthi representative.
The militia deployed fighters to Great Hanish and Little Hanish, islands located about 160 kilometres north of the Bab al-Mandab strait, according to two government representatives and a Houthi official. The takeover followed the withdrawal of hundreds of soldiers allied with the Yemeni government from the island group, the Associated Press reported, citing an anonymous source who was not authorised to speak to journalists.
The latest territorial gains come after a large-scale Houthi offensive in recent days. During fighting with government forces, the militia captured the entire Yemeni coastline along the Red Sea, according to the source material. The Yemeni government said the Houthis now control Bab al-Mandab, a strategically important maritime chokepoint for global trade. The strategically important island of Mayun is also under Houthi control.
The expanding Huthi presence along the Red Sea has increased concerns over the security of commercial shipping between Asia and Europe. From their newly acquired positions, the militia could more effectively attack or disrupt commercial and other vessels than before. The Huthis have previously attacked ships in the Red Sea, with some vessels sunk or seized.
A Huthi spokesman nevertheless said that shipping security would be guaranteed, with the exception of Saudi Arabian vessels. The statement comes as the militia’s expanding territorial control places additional pressure on a maritime route described as enormously important to world trade.
Saudi Arabia, which supports the Yemeni government forces fighting the Huthis, has also come under increasing pressure from the wider regional conflict. The kingdom has recently carried out new attacks against targets in Yemen. Almasirah, a television channel close to the Huthis, reported that two air strikes and artillery fire hit three districts in Saada province on Sunday. The province borders Saudi Arabia and is a stronghold of the pro-Iranian militia.
The pressure on Saudi Arabia extends beyond the fighting in Yemen. The conflict in the Middle East has placed the world’s largest oil exporter under severe strain. Following Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and the growing threat to Bab al-Mandab from the Huthis, the kingdom was also forced to shut down an important pipeline after drone attacks.
For civilians in Yemen, the renewed fighting is producing an increasingly severe humanitarian crisis. According to the UN’s International Organisation for Migration, the number of internally displaced people has risen rapidly in recent days to nearly 86,000.
More than 82,000 people have fled fighting since the beginning of September, while more than 2,000 have crossed the Red Sea strait and fled to Djibouti. The situation was described over the weekend as worsening from day to day, with further increases in displacement expected as fighting continues.
The seizure of additional islands therefore carries consequences extending beyond Yemen’s battlefield. As the Houthis consolidate positions around one of the world’s key maritime passages, the conflict is simultaneously deepening the humanitarian crisis at home and increasing pressure on a shipping route central to trade between Asia and Europe.
