Saudi Arabia carried out airstrikes on an airport in the key Yemeni port city of Mokha after Iran-backed Houthi rebels seized the facility and captured a strategic island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, according to Houthi media and Yemeni officials.
The Houthi broadcaster reported that Saudi warplanes struck Mokha airport, which the rebels took control of on Thursday. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage from the strikes.
The Houthis also captured Mayun, a small volcanic island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the entrance to the Red Sea, two officials confirmed Friday.
The capture was confirmed by a senior military official from Yemen’s internationally recognized government and a Houthi official. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Mayun, also known as Perim, lies about 3.5 kilometers off Yemen’s western coast and occupies a strategic position along a major global shipping route.
Houthi political bureau member Hazam al-Assad said there was “no need for international concern,” arguing that the rebels were responding to Saudi aggression. He warned that the Houthis had “a bank of big important targets” if Riyadh continued its attacks.
There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia.
Earlier Friday, Iran called for an end to Saudi Arabia’s blockade of Yemen and backed the Houthis, while its Foreign Ministry urged Saudi Arabia and the rebels to return to negotiations.
The Houthis’ capture of Mokha, which overlooks tanker routes linking the Red Sea, could further threaten Saudi oil exports and international shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Experts said the developments could also strengthen Tehran’s position in any future negotiations with Washington by opening another pressure point in the region.
The Houthis entered Mokha on Thursday in their biggest territorial advance in years against Saudi-backed forces, bringing them closer to the Bab el-Mandeb, an important alternative shipping route to the Strait of Hormuz.
A senior official from Yemen’s internationally recognized government said the Saudi air force had failed to strike the Houthis earlier as they advanced toward Mokha, suggesting Riyadh may not have received US approval for a large-scale air campaign.
The official blamed a lack of coordination between Yemen’s army and allied forces for giving the Houthis a major opportunity to advance.
The Houthis have attacked shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb and the Red Sea since declaring a blockade there in July, as well as targeting Saudi oil infrastructure. The rebels have said the attacks were in response to the Saudi blockade of Houthi-held areas of Yemen.
Any further disruption to the waterway could affect global shipping and push up crude oil prices. Saudi Arabia has increasingly relied on the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb to transport its oil as Iran has targeted vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
About 12 percent of global goods normally pass through the Bab el-Mandeb, while shipping through the waterway had already fallen by around 60 percent after the Houthis began attacking vessels there in late 2023.
The latest Houthi advances also threaten to undermine a fragile truce that has largely kept Yemen’s civil war at a low level since 2022.
Yemen’s Saudi-backed government on Friday condemned the renewed Houthi attacks and called for international support, saying the country was on the front line of efforts to ensure freedom of navigation.
The escalation has already forced more than 46,000 people to flee their homes over the past week, according to the UN migration agency. Large numbers of people were reportedly seen leaving Mokha with their belongings.
The conflict has raised fears of a return to full-scale civil war in Yemen, where about 40 million people live.
The Houthis have been fighting Yemen’s government since 2014, when they seized large parts of northern and central Yemen, including the capital Sanaa. Saudi Arabia intervened the following year in support of the government.