Houthi Advance Toward Bab al-Mandab Leaves 129 Dead
At least 129 people have been killed in Yemen as Houthi forces advance toward the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait in the deadliest government-rebel clashes in years.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - At least 129 people have been killed in Yemen since Houthi forces launched a new advance toward the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait, according to an AFP tally compiled from military and medical sources, marking the deadliest fighting in years between the Iran-backed group and forces aligned with Yemen's internationally recognized government.
The toll rose sharply on Friday from an earlier count of 81, AFP reported.
A Yemeni military official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said 66 government troops had been killed. Medical and military sources close to the Houthis said at least 62 Houthi fighters were dead, while another medical source reported one civilian killed.
The renewed battles began a day earlier as the Houthis pushed toward positions overlooking approaches to Bab al-Mandab, one of the world's most important maritime chokepoints.
The fighting has centered on parts of Taiz province, including mountainous terrain overlooking supply routes between Taiz and the government-held port of Mokha.
The Houthi expansion reportedly aimed at strengthening the group's control over approaches to the strait.
Why Bab al-Mandab Matters
Bab al-Mandab, Arabic for "Gate of Tears," separates Yemen from Djibouti and Eritrea and connects the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean with the Red Sea.
The strait is roughly 30 kilometers wide at its narrowest point and forms part of the shortest major maritime route between Asia and Europe through Egypt's Suez Canal.
Normally, around 12% of global trade and about one-quarter of container traffic pass through the waterway, while as many as seven million barrels of oil can transit it daily, according to the background material provided for this report.
Any serious disruption forces vessels to sail around southern Africa, increasing travel times, fuel costs and insurance premiums.
The commercial consequences have already been visible.
AFP reported that annual ship transits through the Suez Canal fell from about 26,000 in 2023 to roughly 12,700 in 2025 after repeated Houthi attacks forced many operators to avoid the Red Sea route.
The route has already suffered major disruption since the Houthis began attacking commercial and military vessels in late 2023, saying they were targeting Israel-linked shipping in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
Associated Press reporting cited in the source material said the Houthis attacked more than 100 merchant vessels between 2023 and 2025, sinking two and killing four sailors.
Those attacks prompted U.S. and British strikes on Houthi positions and the deployment of naval forces to protect commercial navigation.
A Wider Regional Pressure Point
The significance of Bab al-Mandab has grown further as conflict involving Iran, Israel and the United States has disrupted the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf's main oil export route.
Saudi Arabia has consequently relied more heavily on its east-west pipeline and Red Sea export terminals, while the Houthis have threatened Saudi-linked shipping.
In August, Houthi missiles struck a Yemeni commercial vessel in Bab al-Mandab, killing four crew members and two government-allied fighters, according to an Associated Press report.
The latest ground offensive therefore carries consequences well beyond Yemen's internal war.
The Houthis control Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, including long stretches of Red Sea coastline, while government and allied forces hold much of the south.
A United Nations-brokered truce in 2022 largely froze the main front lines but did not produce a lasting political settlement.
The current fighting threatens to reopen one of the most strategically sensitive fronts.
Control of terrain overlooking Bab al-Mandab does not require a complete closure of the strait to affect global shipping. Even the threat of missile, drone or coastal attacks can be enough to push shipowners and insurers toward longer routes.
With the death toll already at 129 after barely more than a day of fighting, the latest Houthi advance has become both a major escalation in Yemen's unresolved civil war and a renewed threat around a waterway linking Red Sea security, Gulf energy exports and trade between Europe and Asia.