Saudi airstrikes hit the airport in Yemen’s Red Sea port city of Mokha on Friday after Iranian-backed Houthi rebels seized the strategic city, a Houthi broadcaster reported. There was no immediate report of casualties or damage.
The Houthi advance into Mokha has brought the group closer to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a key global shipping route and an alternative to the Strait of Hormuz. The development has raised concerns over further disruption to commercial shipping. reports AP.
“There is no need for international concern,” Houthi political bureau member Hazam al-Assad told The Associated Press, saying the group was responding to Saudi aggression and that “our forces have a bank of big important targets” if Riyadh continues its strikes. Iran called for an end to Saudi Arabia’s blockade of Yemen and urged a return to negotiations between Riyadh and the Houthis.
Mokha’s capture marks the Houthis’ biggest territorial gain in years against Saudi-backed forces. Analysts say it could give Tehran greater leverage in negotiations with Washington. The conflict also threatens to end a fragile truce that largely halted Yemen’s civil war since 2022. The fighting has killed about 150,000 people and pushed millions towards humanitarian crisis.
A senior official from Yemen’s internationally recognised government blamed “lack of coordination” among allied forces for allowing the Houthis to advance, saying it gave them “a priceless opportunity.”
