The news about the recapture of the coast near Bab al-Mandab comes after a major counteroffensive against the extremist, Iran-backed Houthi movement was launched on Sunday.
A spokesman for the Yemeni military said its forces had cut off and taken control of the road between Dhubab, on the strait, and Mocha. Hundreds of Houthi fighters have been surrounded in the Dhubab district, the spokesman claimed.
Over 1,000 airstrikes
More than 1,000 airstrikes have been carried out against Houthi targets, according to Yemen’s military.
A “strategic offensive” against the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, was also announced on Monday. The Saudi-led coalition supporting government forces used 100 fighter jets in dawn airstrikes against the Houthi movement on Monday morning.
There have also been attacks on the city of Al Hudayda (Hodeidah), Yemen’s most important port on the Red Sea, which is controlled by the Houthi movement.
Turkey and Pakistan announced that they would immediately send troops to Saudi Arabia to reinforce the military coalition fighting in Yemen, the three countries said in a joint statement.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply concerned about the sharp escalation of the fighting.”
Houthis respond
The Houthi movement captured Sanaa in 2014 and has held the capital ever since.
The Houthi movement has responded with new attacks on Saudi Arabia’s energy sector, including a strike on an oil pipeline leading to the Red Sea.
Late Monday evening, the AFP news agency reported that loud explosions were heard in Riyadh.
The Bab al-Mandab Strait connects the Red Sea with the Indian Ocean, making control of the waterway important for much of global shipping - not least because the Strait of Hormuz was closed during the Iran war.
According to the UN, more than 184,000 residents have been forced to flee their homes since the fighting intensified in September.
