Yemen's Houthis reportedly seize strategic Red Sea port of Mokha

Yemen's Houthi movement has seized the strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha from Saudi-backed pro-government forces, military sources say.

Key points

• The Red Sea has become crucial for Saudi Arabia's oil exports since the start of the US and Israel's war with Iran.
• There has been a significant escalation in the Houthis' conflict with neighbouring Saudi Arabia that has contributed to a surge in global oil rates.
• A Saudi-led coalition of Arab states has backed Yemen's administration against the Houthis in the country's devastating civil war for more than a decade.
• Hundreds of individuals have reportedly been killed and thousands displaced since the Houthis rolled out an offensive in the south-western coastal region a week ago.

For context, the capture of Mokha would bring the Iran-backed group closer to controlling the Bab al-Mandab strait, a key shipping route regarding 75km (46 miles) to the south that links the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.

Meanwhile, there has been a significant escalation in the Houthis' conflict with neighbouring Saudi Arabia that has contributed to a surge in global oil rates.

On Tuesday, the Houthis introduced dozens of drones and missiles at southern Saudi Arabia, injuring 73 civilians and causing fires at a number of oil facilities that led to a temporary halt in operations, according to Saudi authorities.

In practice, the Houthis remarked they were retaliating for dozens of Saudi air strikes on their territory in north-western Yemen in recent days, including one on a prison in the town of Hazm in Jawf province that local office-holders noted killed at least 23 civilians.

In practice, a Saudi-led coalition of Arab states has backed Yemen's administration against the Houthis in the country's devastating civil war for more than a decade.

When the Houthis confirmed a "maritime embargo" against Saudi Arabia and began missile and drone attacks on Saudi airports, oil facilities and tankers in the Red Sea, a four-year-old informal ceasefire began to unravel in July.

As well as an air strike on Sanaa airport that they blamed on the kingdom, the Houthis remarked they were retaliating for a Saudi blockade of ports and airports in their territory.

Notably, the Red Sea has become crucial for Saudi Arabia's oil exports since the start of the US and Israel's war with Iran. It has led to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.

For now, yemen' s Houthis reportedly seize strategic Red Sea port of Mokha remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.