File image.
The Saudi-backed Yemeni counterattack toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait appeared to have stalled by October 6 after an initial advance, with the Houthis (Ansar Allah) retaining most of their positions around the strategic waterway.
The offensive began a day earlier with Saudi air support as allied Yemeni government forces advanced rapidly along the southern Red Sea coast. Within hours, Saudi-backed forces said they had captured Bab al-Mandab and Dhubab and had entered the port city of Mocha.
Houthi media, however, published material from the same areas. An Al-Masirah reporter released a photo from Bab al-Mandab, while several videos showed Houthi fighters in Dhubab and Mocha. Only an airstrip near Dhubab appears to be still under the control of Saudi-backed forces as of now.
Click to see full-size image. (X)
Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, the Houthi military spokesman, later disputed reports of a government breakthrough in an official statement.
“The armed forces maintain control over all their battlefield gains, and what the enemy is promoting are imaginary victories to satisfy its masters,” Saree said.
The spokesman said Houthi forces had attacked Saudi-backed concentrations at Ras al-Ara and al-Saqiya, claiming more than 200 troops were killed or wounded there. He added that further strikes east of al-Jawf and Ragwan in Marib caused additional casualties and destroyed military vehicles, while Houthi forces continued pursuing Saudi-backed government forces in Taiz.
The Houthis expanded their missile and drone campaign against Saudi Arabia in response to the counterattack toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
In a statement issued late October 5, Saree said three operations targeted Saudi sites. He said one strike hit King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, another targeted an Aramco refinery in Rabigh and caused a fire, and a third targeted Abha airport, Khamis Mushait military base, Akifah camp in Asir, and sites in Najran and Jizan.
The next day, Saree announced two more attacks, saying a ballistic missile hit the al-Daghareer military camp in Jizan and caused dozens of casualties. He added that another missile attack targeted Abha International Airport and disrupted air traffic.
Saree warned international airlines against continuing to operate through Saudi airspace, while excluding flights over Mecca and Medina.
Saudi Arabia acknowledged on October 6 that Jizan and Najran international airports were hit. The kingdom’s General Authority of Civil Aviation said three people suffered minor injuries.
All in all, the Houthis appear to have absorbed the Saudi-backed counterattack toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait. However, fighting there could still go on for days, or even weeks. The area is low and open, which makes it extremely difficult to defend.
Further advances by the Houthis in Taiz, where government forces are already under siege, could, however, lead to a catastrophic collapse in the Saudi-led camp along Yemen’s southern coast, all the way to the port city of Aden.
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oh dear! mbs is f….d!