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Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis seized control of the country’s entire Red Sea coast and captured three strategic islands in the Bab al-Mandab Strait on Friday, government officials said, consolidating their hold over a vital shipping corridor linking Europe and Asia.
A military official from Yemen’s internationally recognized government said all territory previously held by government forces “on the western coast has fallen” after the Houthis captured Mayyun Island and the Greater and Lesser Hanish islands.
A local government official said the group had “completed their takeover of the Bab al-Mandab area and Mayyun Island.”
A witness told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that gunmen were “deploying along the Bab al-Mandab shore and are driving around in military vehicles.”
The advances followed a week-long offensive that has left hundreds dead and gave the Houthis control of the Yemeni side of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the southern gateway to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.
The capture of Mayyun, located in the middle of the strait, and the Hanish islands increases the Houthis’ ability to target Saudi tankers, which the group has attacked since July.
Saudi Arabia has increasingly relied on the Red Sea for oil shipments since Iran blockaded the Strait of Hormuz.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said navigation through Bab al-Mandab remained “safe” for all shipping except Saudi vessels.
“Maritime navigation is safe for all companies except Saudi ships, which have already been banned,” Saree said.
Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, congratulated the Houthis on what he called their “resounding victory.”
Farea Al-Muslimi, a research fellow at Chatham House, said the latest advance meant Iran and its allies had influence over both Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab, two major Middle East maritime chokepoints.
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Commercial shipping through Bab al-Mandab has already fallen sharply, with around 26 vessels a day crossing in recent days compared with about 70 before the Red Sea crisis, ship-tracking data showed.
A total of 79 commodity vessels crossed the strait from Tuesday through Thursday, including 25 on Tuesday, 28 on Wednesday and 26 on Thursday. Kpler data put the broader 10-day average at about 27 vessels per day.
World Bank Data Lab calculations based on IMF PortWatch satellite AIS data show Bab al-Mandab handled an average of about 71 cargo and tanker vessels per day between January 2022 and October 2023.
Traffic initially rose above 77 vessels per day between Oct. 7 and Nov. 16, 2023, before falling after Houthi attacks on commercial shipping began that November.
Between Nov. 17, 2023, and Feb. 19, 2024, daily traffic averaged 43 vessels, about 39% below the pre-crisis level. By March 2024, traffic had roughly halved, while research by the International Institute for Strategic Studies found transits between February and October 2024 remained around 60% below pre-crisis levels.
Traffic averaged about 33.5 vessels per day during 2025 and remained in the mid-30s through the first half of 2026 before falling to 34 in July and 28 in August.
The latest deterioration followed a July 20 Houthi announcement of a naval blockade targeting Saudi port traffic. Kpler said commodity-related traffic averaged 34 vessels per day before the latest Saudi-Houthi escalation, with the seven-day moving average falling to 24 by July 29.
AIS-based figures may undercount actual traffic because some ships travel with transponders switched off amid heightened security risks.
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