Yemen’s Houthis close in on strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait in new threat to shipping

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi militants have ⁠reached the Red Sea islands of Hanish after capturing the coastal city of Mocha, two Yemeni government sources said, in a dramatic strategic shift that could threaten the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world’s most important shipping routes.

Fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces has intensified in recent days, with the militant group shifting its focus to control over Yemen’s long coastline instead of just the north, putting...