Yemen’s Houthis Seize Strategic Red Sea Port, Officials Say

Yemen’s Houthis Seize Strategic Red Sea Port, Officials Say - The New York Times

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Yemen’s Houthis Seize Strategic Red Sea Port, Officials Say

The Iran-backed militia routed Yemeni government forces in Mokha, putting the group in a stronger position to attack ships in a crucial waterway for global trade.

Listen · 4:14 min

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!Rows of men in military fatigues and berets, armed with heavy weapons.

*Soldiers at a recruitment event in Houthi-controlled Sanaa, Yemen, on Thursday.

Credit...

Mohammed Huwais/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images*

By

Saeed Al-Batati

Shuaib Almosawa

and Vivian Nereim

Saeed Al-Batati reported from al-Mukalla, Yemen, Shuaib Almosawa reported from Sanaa, Yemen, and Vivian Nereim reported from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Sept. 10, 2026, 6:31 a.m. ET

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The Iran-backed Houthi militia captured a strategic Red Sea port city on Thursday, according to two Yemeni officials, a move that could allow the group to exert greater control over an important international shipping route.

In a swift ground offensive, the Houthis pushed out forces allied with the Yemeni government that is backed by Saudi Arabia and seized the city of Mokha as well as its port, according to a local official in the city and a senior provincial official. Both spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

IRAQ

IRAN

Strait

of Hormuz

SAUDI

ARABIA

EGYPT

Houthi

stronghold

Red

Sea

OMAN

SUDAN

YEMEN

Arabian

Sea

Mokha

Bab al-Mandab

Strait

IRAN

Strait

of Hormuz

SAUDI

ARABIA

EGYPT

Red

Sea

Houthi

stronghold

OMAN

SUDAN

YEMEN

Arabian Sea

Mokha

Bab al-Mandab

Strait

Sources: Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute (Houthi-controlled areas).

Samuel Granados/The New York Times

Mokha has been the focus of several days of fierce ground battles between the Houthis and the internationally recognized government of Yemen.

The two sides have been at war since 2014, when the Houthis seized Yemen’s capital, Sanaa. Soon after, a Saudi-led military coalition began a bombing campaign to try to restore the government, plunging the impoverished nation into a civil war that has lasted for more than a decade.

Mokha is less than 50 miles from the narrow Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea.

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