Houthis seize Mocha port on September 10, positioning to control Bab al-Mandeb Strait

Yemen's Houthi rebels captured the strategic Red Sea port city of Mocha on September 10, 2026, after fierce clashes with pro-government forces that left government troops withdrawing from the city. Three Yemeni government sources told Reuters of the seizure, according to Al Jazeera. The capture places the Iran-backed group 75 kilometers from the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, one of the world's most critical maritime chokepoints linking Asia to Europe.

The seizure marks a significant territorial gain for the Houthis in their escalating offensive along Yemen's southern Red Sea coast. According to Al Jazeera correspondent Yousef Mawry, the government "tried to put up a fight; they called reinforcements ... but the overwhelming military pressure of the Ansar Allah Houthis eventually" led them to lose control of the city and port. A Yemeni military source told the Associated Press that Houthi fighters also seized Zuqar Island in the Red Sea, about 80 kilometers north-west of Mocha, after launching rockets and a ground assault using boats.

Defence analyst Wolfgang Pusztai said the capture of Mocha enables the Houthis to "control pretty much all of Yemen's coast on the Red Sea" and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. The Strait of Hormuz, a comparable chokepoint, is about 34 kilometers wide at its narrowest point, compared with about 29 kilometers for Bab al-Mandeb, per Al Jazeera. Pusztai stated: "This means they could control it just with artillery; they wouldn't need to even use missiles or drones to attack ships. This would certainly be a major blow to Saudi Arabian shipping and international shipping."

Casualty figures from the offensive remain unconfirmed. The BBC reported that hundreds have been killed and thousands displaced since the Houthis launched their offensive a week ago, but did not provide verified numbers. Al Jazeera correspondent Yasser Hassan reported that the Houthis are moving south towards Dhubab. Government forces in Taiz have pledged not to let the Houthis advance further, with field commanders saying there are active attempts under way to retake Mocha, according to Al Jazeera.

Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council, urged Arab states and other countries to help protect Yemen's coasts and restore state control. Al-Alimi stated that developments around Mocha and the Bab al-Mandeb "are not a purely Yemeni affair", but a regional and international matter tied to global trade, and called for the Strait to avoid becoming "another Strait of Hormuz." Yemen's Foreign Minister Afrah al-Zouba sent a message to the United Nations Security Council calling for a firm international stance on the situation along Yemen's western coast.

In response to the Houthi advance, the Houthi-affiliated Saba news agency reported that Saudi forces launched 40 air strikes on Taiz, Hodeidah, al-Jawf and Marib on September 10. The BBC reported that on Tuesday, September 8, the Houthis launched dozens of drones and missiles at southern Saudi Arabia, injuring 73 civilians and causing fires at oil facilities that led to a temporary halt in operations, per Saudi authorities. The Houthis said they were retaliating for Saudi air strikes, including one on a prison in Hazm that they said killed at least 23 civilians, and for a Saudi blockade of ports and airports in Houthi territory.

Houthi spokesman Mohammed Abdul Salam described the coastal offensive as a "national operation" aimed at asserting Yemeni sovereignty. Salam said the group had no further territorial ambitions and that a "just and honourable peace" remains its strategic choice, according to Al Jazeera. He stated that navigation and international trade in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait "remain safe and uninterrupted." The Houthis said they posed no threat to international shipping but reiterated their threat to target vessels from Saudi Arabia. The Houthi-run humanitarian operations co-ordination centre stressed that the embargo on Saudi ships remained in place, per the BBC.

Yemen's ambassador to Qatar, Rajeh Badi, accused Iran of reigniting the war and using the Houthis to tighten its grip on Red Sea shipping routes, per Al Jazeera. However, defence analyst Wolfgang Pusztai stated that while Iran has "a huge influence on the Houthis", "the Houthis are not only proxies of Iran. They are fighting also their own war." Saudi foreign policy analyst Abdulaziz Alghashian described the rapid Houthi advance as "concerning; it's disappointing, but maybe not overly surprising" and suggested that taking Mocha was not necessarily enabled by "the strength of the Houthis, but probably a discombobulation of the anti-Houthi forces."

Pakistan warned Iran to restrain the group and said its defence pact with Saudi Arabia and Turkiye could become operational if Houthi attacks on Saudi territory persist. Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkiye finalized the Mecca Defence Alliance last month, according to Al Jazeera.