Yemen Forces Gain Ground but Houthis Push Toward Red Sea — SkimNews
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- Yemeni government forces recaptured Hais district in Hodeidah and advanced around the al-Barh junction in western Taiz, per SABA news agency, with 26 government soldiers killed in Saturday fighting alone
- Clashes in Taiz killed more than 60 people including civilians on Saturday, per AFP, while UN OCHA reported about 1,800 families displaced over two days
- Houthi forces still control Sanaa and several other cities and have pushed toward the government-held port of al-Makha and territory bordering the Bab al-Mandeb strait
- Saudi Arabia carried out air strikes against Houthi positions recently captured in Taiz, while the Iran-backed Houthis announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia in July
- The escalation broke a period of relative calm that had held since a UN-brokered truce in April 2022, with fighting resuming across multiple front lines in early August
- Presidential Leadership Council chairman Rashad al-Alimi said Yemen's armed forces are capable of restoring control over the entire country, though the article notes it is "too early to describe the developments as a significant shift"
Why it matters: The Hais recapture is strategically positioned at the junction of Hodeidah, Taiz, and Ibb — potentially the most consequential government advance since the 2022 ceasefire. Yet with Houthis simultaneously advancing toward the Bab al-Mandeb strait and 26 soldiers killed in hours on Saturday, control of Red Sea coastal access remains genuinely contested by both sides.
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