Yemen's Houthis deploy forces to strategic Hanish Islands in Red Sea

Yemen's Houthi group has deployed forces to the strategic Hanish Islands in the Red Sea following the withdrawal of government naval troops, according to a Yemeni government official.

"The naval forces withdrew (on Thursday afternoon), and the Houthis moved in," the official said on condition of anonymity, adding that Houthi forces had begun establishing positions on the islands.

The deployment significantly expands the Houthis' military presence in the southern Red Sea, bringing their forces closer to the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a vital maritime chokepoint linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.

Located north of the Bab al-Mandab Strait and near major international shipping lanes, the Hanish archipelago holds strategic value for monitoring and securing maritime traffic.

Earlier in the day, the Houthis seized Yemen's Red Sea port city of Mocha after fierce fighting forced government troops to retreat south toward Dhubab, between Mocha and Bab al-Mandab.

Mocha lies about 70 km north of the strait's narrowest point.

The latest advances mark a major battlefield shift along Yemen's western coast amid one of the sharpest escalations since a UN-brokered truce in 2022 largely halted major hostilities.

Yemen's conflict began in late 2014 when the Houthis seized Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, prompting the Saudi-led coalition to intervene in 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government.