The advance of Yemeni forces on the West Coast and Taiz, and tensions in Suwayda, Syria, after a Druze engagement

The Houthi attack on the fronts of the West Coast, southern Hodeidah, and western Taiz began to rebound against the group on the third day of the widespread ground escalation, with the Yemeni government forces moving to the counterattack and achieving field progress in more than one axis, coinciding with military aircraft and drones entering the battle and targeting Houthi sites, reinforcements, and supply lines.

The Yemeni armed forces achieved progress on the Al-Jarahi, Haifan, and Jabal Habashi fronts, and took control of sites and hills of field importance. They also thwarted infiltration attempts and other attacks, at a time when the naval forces announced the destruction of two booby-trapped boats south of Al-Khawkhah on the Red Sea.

This transformation comes after a massive Houthi attack during which the group attempted to make breakthroughs in the areas south of Hodeidah and west of Taiz, amid information about large human and material losses among its ranks.

The repercussions of the battles reveal a worsening human crisis within the group, as medical sources in Sanaa say that hospitals, morgues and intensive care rooms are facing unprecedented pressure, with the Houthis stressing secrecy about the numbers of dead and wounded.

At the same time, the group is expanding recruitment operations in schools and luring high school students through events and training courses, in an attempt to compensate for the human bleeding, while government forces seek to exploit the counter-attack to protect Taiz and its corridor towards Mokha and secure the road to Bab al-Mandab.

Druze sources in the Syrian city of Suwayda confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that a great state of dissatisfaction was spreading among the popular circles after the “National Guard” affiliated with Sheikh Hikmat Al-Hijri attacked on the night of Thursday - Friday, the home of Atef Huneidi, who is called “the Pasha” in the governorate, and then kidnapped and “exiled” him, on Friday morning, to Damascus, because of his issuing a statement in which he strongly criticized Al-Hijri’s statements, in which he said that the Druze “share the faith with the state.” Israel,” and that they are “an integral part of it.”

However, the sources, who preferred to remain anonymous due to the current security situation, told Asharq Al-Awsat that popular criticism of the incident was taking place “in whispers and in closed rooms, and the governorate did not witness movements on the ground,” in rejection of what happened, while the governor of Suwayda, Mustafa Al-Bakour, called on “the notables and wise men in the governorate” to raise their voices and reject what is happening.

The Henedi family issued a statement published by pages concerned with Suwayda news, in which they affirmed that “the attack on the family home, the shooting and bombing, and the intimidation of women and children is a prescribed criminal crime that we will not tolerate now or in the future by all available legal means,” denouncing “the armed assault and uncivilized response to any opinion, regardless of whether it is support, rejection, or reservation.”

The statement considered, “The attack and deportation of Atef Heneidi is a dangerous and reprehensible precedent that we cannot accept as a family, neither for Atef nor for anyone else.”

The family said in the statement: “We place these aforementioned items in the custody of the people of the law, its sponsors, society and its factions, to stand up to their responsibilities in protecting this fabric and the rule of law and institutions, and so that such actions are not repeated,” stressing that “accountability is a right and a duty, and must extend to all crimes that occurred against the people and the nation in July 2025 and before and after.”

On the other hand, a statement on behalf of “the people of the town of Al-Majdal,” from which Huneidi hails, spread on social media, stating that “after consultation between the people of the town and the stakeholders, it was decided to remove him (Atef Huneidi) from Al-Majdal, in a way that preserves the town’s security, stability, and the dignity of its people.”

But Druze sources in Suwayda told Asharq Al-Awsat that the statement was issued by the National Guard groups controlling the town of Al-Majdal.

In contrast to the silence that dominates the street in Suwayda, activists on social media found an outlet to express their positions on what happened.

Dr. Fayez Quntar, in a post on his Facebook page on Saturday, considered that “kidnapping Atef Huneidi and pushing him out of his home and the home of his ancestors puts Suwayda in danger of division, and the people of the Mountain will not accept the suppression of freedoms, the gagging of mouths, and all this arbitrariness... Enough is enough,” noting that “these are the features of the promised state of Bashan, including suppression, kidnapping, confiscation of freedoms, and monopolization of Suwayda’s decisions and the future of its children.”

In turn, activist Osama Al-Halabi confirmed in his post, “The authentic national voices in the mountain will not stop, but will become louder and louder... because the original does not defeat temporary normalization, immediate interests, and illusions.”

Not fleeting

On Friday night - Saturday, the Governor of Suwayda, Mustafa Al-Bakour, issued a statement published on his Telegram account, in which he considered that “the storming of Huneidi’s house and guest house, and his subsequent arrest and deportation from Suwayda at the hands of outlaw groups, cannot be treated as a passing incident that can be tolerated, or dealt with as if it were a normal matter.”

Al-Bakour warned of “the danger of these actions being repeated until people become accustomed to them. Silence about transgression today may make it a custom tomorrow, and whoever believes that the issue does not concern him because it happened to someone else, must ask himself: Who can guarantee that his house, guest house, or one of his children will not come tomorrow?”

He added: “We do not call for fighting, nor for revenge, nor for confronting weapons with weapons, but not calling for violence does not mean accepting humiliation or remaining silent about transgression, and there is a big difference between wisdom and submission, between concern for civil peace and fear becoming a justification for silence.”

Al-Bakour explained, addressing the people of Suwayda: “The prestige of society is not created by uncontrolled weapons, but rather by the people’s position when they say with one voice: No one is above society, no one is above the law, and no group has the right to appoint itself as a judge, a jailer, and a decision maker about the fate of the people.” Therefore, what is required, according to Al-Bakour, is “a clear social and civil position, from reasonable people, notables, people of speech, and everyone who fears for the future of As-Suwayda, rejecting the storming of homes and guest houses, arresting, deporting, and imposing opinions by force of arms, regardless of the name of the perpetrator and whatever the name of the target.”

A source in the city of Suwayda stated that Al-Bakour’s statement had “a good effect, but the decision (to resolve the Suwayda crisis) is in the hands of the regional countries and is subject to understandings, and the people have no influence on this file and decision.”