Violent battles and Yemeni forces advance towards Bab al-Mandab after Al-Alimi announced the launch of a large-scale military operation

Yemeni military sources reported, on Monday, that the “Giants’ Brigades” and “Homeland Shield” forces are continuing their advance in areas surrounding the Bab al-Mandab Strait, amid violent battles with the “Houthi” group in the Dhubab area, in conjunction with extensive military operations to restore areas under Houthi control.

The sources said that the forces are advancing towards Dhubab, seeking to completely cut off the Houthi supply lines leading to the region, while engaging in violent confrontations with Houthi elements in several areas near the strait.

The Giants and Homeland Shield forces are advancing to regain control of the Dhubab area, with the support of air cover.

The developments on the ground come the day after Yemeni President Rashad Al-Alimi announced the launch of a military operation to restore lands controlled by the Houthis, in a new escalation that comes after weeks of renewed confrontations on a number of Yemeni fronts.

In a related context, the Yemeni forces announced the implementation of 1,122 targeting operations, during the past hours, against Houthi sites and gatherings on a number of fronts.

The spokesman for the Yemeni forces, Majed Al-Nuzaili, said in a statement that the operations targeted artillery and launcher positions, defensive fortifications, approaches and payment methods, supply lines and means, in addition to reinforcements, combat build-ups, and Houthi command and control centers.

Al-Nuzaili explained that the operations included various axes in the governorates of Saada, Al-Jawf, Taiz, and the coast, and were carried out using military aircraft, drones, artillery, missiles, and launchers, in addition to sniper units.

According to the field results reported by the spokesman, the operations resulted in the killing of 1,747 Houthi members, and the destruction of 364 military vehicles, equipment, and means of transportation and supplies, stressing that the armed forces will continue their operations with the aim of restoring the state’s lands and institutions.

Al-Alimi announced, on Sunday, the launch of a military operation to restore lands under the control of the Houthis, following an escalation on the Yemeni fronts during the past month, with the group advancing towards the Red Sea coast and areas near the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

Bab al-Mandab is one of the most important sea lanes in the region, as it connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, and represents a major corridor for the movement of commercial ships and oil tankers between Asia and Europe.

The latest developments come after a period of relative calm in Yemen, following a truce concluded in 2022 between the Houthis and the Yemeni government, before the confrontations renewed last July, coinciding with the expansion of tension and conflict in the region.

Yesterday, the head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al-Alimi, announced the start of military operations against the Houthi group allied with Iran to restore the remainder of the republic’s lands and extend the authority of the state and its institutions over the entire national territory.

Hours after Al-Alimi’s announcement, the leadership of the “Coalition to Support Legitimacy” confirmed providing full operational support to the Yemeni forces and standing with the legitimate government “until the restoration of the state and its institutions, the elimination of the terrorist Houthi militia, and the end of its threat to freedom of maritime navigation.”[...]

Coalition Forces spokesman, Major General Turki Al-Maliki, said in a statement, “The attacks by the terrorist Houthi militia on the Kingdom... require the continuation of necessary and necessary measures to deter the hostile actions of the terrorist Houthi militia with the aim of protecting the security and sovereignty of the Kingdom, as well as regional and international security.”

While Al-Alimi stressed the continuation of operations according to the approved plans “until the mission is accomplished,” this announcement represents an official transition from the stage of preparation and mobilization to open military action, after exhausting opportunities for calm and peace efforts with the Houthi group.

Al-Alimi said, in a speech to the Yemeni people, that all the armed and security forces and military formations received directives to carry out their tasks, stressing that the battle aims to restore state institutions, and is not a war against the residents of areas controlled by the Houthis or against a sect or tribe. He called on residents in Houthi-controlled areas to stay away from military sites, gatherings, and supply routes, and to protect their children from being thrown into combat, reiterating at the same time the state’s commitment to safe return and the declared amnesty for those who abandon their weapons and stop fighting in the ranks of the group.

In a message to the government forces and the resistance, the head of the Command Council stressed that the mission “is not only to restore the land, but to restore the state to it,” calling for the protection of civilians and property and adherence to the law, stressing that there is no room for revenge, retaliation, or assault on innocent people.

Al-Alimi's announcement coincides with the intensification of battles in Taiz Governorate, where the Houthis have intensified their attacks in the southwestern countryside, seeking to cut off the roads linking the city of Taiz to its southern countryside and areas under government control, including Lahj and Aden. The fighting cut off the road between Al-Turbah and the city of Taiz, in a development that threatens to isolate the city from its southern surroundings and the liberated areas, including the city of Aden.