Houthis Capture Mokha Port, Strike Saudi Cities — SkimNews
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- Yemeni government forces launched airstrikes on Houthi positions in Mokha, Dhubab, and Taiz province on September 13, 2026, after conceding a "painful" defeat when Houthis captured Mokha and an island on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait the previous week.
- Houthis fired drones and missiles into Saudi Arabia, targeting the southern city of Abha and Khamis Mushait province; Saudi civil defence reported a projectile near the border injured two people and damaged a mosque and several buildings.
- The National Resistance, a government-allied force on Yemen's west coast, reported more than 500 government fighters killed and approximately 1,500 wounded since August 9, with over 1,000 Houthis killed in Hodeida and Taiz provinces.
- The United Nations estimated more than 80,000 people have been displaced since the start of September, with over 2,000 Yemenis reaching Djibouti via perilous Red Sea crossings where the navy is providing emergency assistance.
- The Houthi advance at Mokha places rebels just 32 km across the Bab el-Mandeb Strait from the U.S. military base in Djibouti — the main US base in Africa, which also hosts bases from China, France, and Japan.
- The escalation targets Saudi oil infrastructure and Red Sea shipping under a declared Houthi blockade; oil prices have already risen again, and the disruption could hand Iran leverage in its conflict with the United States.
- Sultan al-Arada, a member of Yemen's presidential council, called the collapse of government forces in Mokha "painful and regrettable" and said forces are regrouping to return to battle.
Why it matters: Saudi Arabia absorbed Houthi strikes on Abha and Khamis Mushait while losing Mokha, and the rebels now sit 32 km from the main US base in Djibouti; oil prices have risen again on Red Sea shipping disruptions, directly tying the Yemen escalation to Iran's standoff with Washington and the security of a critical chokepoint.
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