Saudi Arabia Plans Offensive to Push Houthis From Red Sea Choke Point, Reuters Reports
Saudi Arabia is preparing a military offensive against Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen aimed at retaking the strategic Bab el-Mandeb strait, the southern gateway of the Red Sea, Reuters reported on Friday.
The operation, expected to launch in the coming weeks, would be fought on the ground by Yemeni forces overseen by Riyadh and backed by Saudi airstrikes, six people with knowledge of the preparations told Reuters. More than 100,000 Yemeni troops could be mobilised depending on the scale, the officials said.
According to the report, Riyadh is weighing two options: a narrowly focused coastal assault around Bab el-Mandeb, or a broader campaign with synchronised attacks on several fronts in the governorates of Al-Bayda, Marib, Taiz and Al-Jawf. The aim would be to reverse the rapid Houthi advance down Yemen’s Red Sea coast last month, which put the rebels in control of the waterway linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
The United States is already providing intelligence support but is not expected to take part in combat. Axios reported that Washington has turned down a Saudi request for American airstrikes against Houthi targets — a US official said the administration is “not going to take kinetic action for now”, though that could change if the operation stalls. Axios also reported that President Donald Trump was close to ordering a strike on the Houthis last week at Saudi Arabia’s request but ultimately decided against it.
Saudi Arabia entered Yemen’s civil war in 2015 at the head of an Arab coalition supporting the internationally recognised government, which the Houthis had driven out of the capital Sanaa. A truce agreed in 2022 largely held until this year, when Houthi missile and drone attacks on Saudi shipping and oil infrastructure resumed as a spillover from the US-Iran war, according to Reuters.
Sources
https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/houthis-saudi-offensive/2026/10/02/id/1271550
About the Author — Abdul Mannan
Related Articles
Trump Says Iran Likely Behind Flydubai Attack, Vows Tehran Will Be ‘Hit Very Hard’
Trump told reporters Iran was likely behind the attack on a flydubai flight to Israel, warning Tehran would…
Saudi Coalition Says Houthis Hit Medina Power Station Serving the Prophet’s Mosque
The Saudi-led coalition said a Houthi drone struck the Taibah power station in Medina on 29 September; the…
US Targets Iran’s Auto and Rail Giants in Fresh ‘Operation Economic Outcast’ Sanctions
The US Treasury designated Iran's biggest carmakers and rail companies, plus foreign suppliers, as Washington's oil blockade squeezes…