Iran-backed Houthi rebels have completed a rapid, days-long offensive along Yemen’s Red Sea coastline, seizing the strategic Perim Island inside the Bab al-Mandeb Strait on Friday and tightening their grip on one of the world’s most critical shipping chokepoints, according to multiple government and military sources.
The capture of Perim Island, also known as Mayyun, came just one day after Houthi fighters seized the historic port city of Mocha along with the nearby Red Sea islands of Hanish. Yemeni government forces reportedly withdrew from Perim on Thursday as Houthi fighters advanced, with the militants also taking the mainland coastal town of Dhubab, located directly across from the island. An eyewitness told reporters that armed Houthi fighters were seen deploying along the strait’s shoreline in military vehicles.
Perim Island sits directly inside the strait, dividing it into two separate shipping channels, and its capture significantly strengthens the Houthis’ ability to threaten maritime traffic through the waterway, which carried roughly 8.1 million barrels of oil per day during the second quarter of this year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The advance represents a dramatic escalation in a conflict that has been raging for months. According to Yemeni government, Iranian, and regional sources, the offensive came with direct guidance from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, which is reportedly seeking to open a new front in Tehran’s broader standoff with the United States. U.S. officials believe hundreds of Revolutionary Guard officers are currently operating in Yemen alongside the Houthis as they work to choke off the strait.
The stakes extend well beyond Yemen’s borders. With the Strait of Hormuz already effectively closed for roughly six months amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, Saudi Arabia has been relying heavily on the Red Sea route through the Bab al-Mandeb to move oil to international markets. Analysts warn that a full Houthi blockade of the strait would deal a severe blow to global shipping and further spike energy prices worldwide, potentially requiring direct U.S. military intervention to keep the waterway open.
Adding to the pressure, Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry confirmed Friday that strikes inside the kingdom forced the shutdown of a critical oil pipeline. In a statement, Houthi forces claimed that “maritime navigation is safe for all companies except for Saudi vessels,” vowing to continue striking Saudi targets “until the aggression stops and the blockade against our dear people is lifted.” The group also claimed to have shot down nine aircraft and captured, killed, or wounded hundreds of opposing troops during the offensive.
In response to the collapsing defensive lines, Yemen’s internationally recognized, Saudi-backed government said it would deploy additional weapons and aircraft to try to retake lost territory and cut off Houthi movement along key roadways, including the route leading to Mocha.
More than 100 U.S. military advisors are already stationed in Saudi Arabia as part of a joint forces command established to help the Saudis gather intelligence and identify Houthi targets, underscoring how directly Washington has become entangled in the fight even without formally joining it. The rapid Houthi advance, occurring during an already tense period in the broader Middle East conflict, has intensified fears in Washington and allied capitals that the war with Iran could soon spread into a second major front centered on global energy security.
