Yemeni Government Forces Claim Strategic Gains Near Bab al-Mandeb as Regional Powers Meet in Riyadh

Yemen's internationally recognized government announced on Monday that its forces had captured the Dhubab district and several strategic positions close to the Bab al-Mandeb strait, marking a significant development in the country's long-running conflict just one day after the government declared a major military offensive against Houthi fighters. The operation represents one of the most consequential territorial shifts reported since Houthi forces made sweeping advances across western Yemen in mid-September.

According to a statement released by the Saudi-backed military and carried by Yemen's state news agency Saba, units from the Homeland Shield Forces and the Giants Brigades conducted a large-scale operation with aerial support, targeting Houthi positions and movements across multiple areas of Dhubab district. The military described the operation as part of a broader campaign to roll back Houthi control in the region.

An unnamed army source told Saba that government troops had advanced during the operation and secured important positions, effectively cutting off supply lines and roads that lead toward Bab al-Mandeb. The source also claimed that Houthi fighters suffered significant casualties, with numerous personnel killed and others wounded, while military equipment was either destroyed or damaged during the clashes. Government forces were said to be continuing to comb through and secure the newly captured areas while further disrupting supply routes to Houthi units.

The territorial claims were accompanied by broader battlefield statistics. Brigadier-General Majid Abdullah al-Nuzaili, a spokesman for Yemeni forces, stated in a post on the social media platform X that his forces had launched 1,122 attacks against Houthi sites. These targets reportedly included artillery positions, rocket launchers, and command and control centers. Al-Nuzaili said the attacks employed warplanes, drones, missiles, rockets, artillery, and snipers, and were concentrated in the provinces of Saada, al-Jawf, and Taiz, as well as along the coast. He further claimed that 1,747 Houthi fighters had been killed in the operations.

Al Jazeera noted that it could not independently verify the battlefield reports, a common limitation in the Yemen conflict where access for international journalists is severely restricted and casualty figures from both sides are frequently disputed. The Houthis, an armed group also known as Ansar Allah, which translates from Arabic as "Supporters of God," have not publicly responded to the specific claims made by government forces regarding Dhubab.

The latest developments come against the backdrop of a devastating conflict that has gripped Yemen since 2014, when Houthi forces seized the capital, Sanaa, forcing the internationally recognized government to relocate to the southern city of Aden. The war escalated dramatically after a fragile truce between the government and the Houthis, brokered in 2022, collapsed in July of this year. Since the truce's failure, hostilities have intensified across multiple front lines.

In mid-September, Houthi forces launched a rapid offensive across parts of western Yemen, capturing the port city of Mocha and several key strategic islands in the Bab al-Mandeb strait. The waterway is critically important to global shipping, serving as a chokepoint between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden through which a substantial portion of world trade passes. Since those Houthi gains, anti-Houthi forces have largely managed to stabilize the front lines, setting the stage for the government's newly announced counteroffensive.

On Sunday, Rashad al-Alimi, chairman of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council, the executive body of the internationally recognized government, announced the commencement of military operations aimed at retaking the remaining territory held by the Houthis. The Dhubab operation appears to be the first major action under that newly declared campaign, signaling a potentially prolonged and intensified phase of the conflict.

The battlefield developments coincided with high-level diplomatic activity in Saudi Arabia. Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar arrived in the kingdom for meetings with Saudi and Turkish officials, held under the framework of the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement. Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed in a statement on X that Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and military chief Asim Munir would accompany Dar at Monday's talks in Riyadh, alongside their counterparts from Saudi Arabia and Turkiye.

The three nations signed the defence pact on August 7, establishing a framework to strengthen collective deterrence and expand defence cooperation across the region. The agreement contains a mutual defence clause stipulating that an attack on any one of the three countries is considered an attack on all of them. The first committee meeting under the accord was held in Istanbul, Turkiye, on August 31.

Pakistan's Dar indicated last week that the urgent talks would address a proposal for political engagement with the Iran-aligned Houthis as an alternative to pursuing a purely military solution, following an approach made by Tehran. The inclusion of a diplomatic track in the discussions suggests regional powers are weighing multiple options as the conflict evolves, even as the Yemeni government presses ahead with its offensive.

Al Jazeera's Michael Appel, reporting on the situation, said the Yemen war was expected to feature prominently in the Saudi-hosted talks. He emphasized the humanitarian dimension of the escalating violence, noting that civilians remain trapped along the fragmented front lines. According to Appel, the announcement of an expanded military operation leaves tens of thousands of Yemenis facing the prospect of continued displacement and hunger as a humanitarian crisis deepens.

The convergence of military escalation and diplomatic maneuvering underscores the complex, multi-layered nature of the Yemen conflict, which has drawn in regional powers and become entangled with broader geopolitical rivalries. With government forces claiming fresh gains near one of the world's most vital maritime chokepoints and regional officials gathering in Riyadh to discuss both military coordination and possible political engagement, the coming days and weeks are likely to prove decisive for the trajectory of the war and for the civilians caught in its path.