Yemeni government forces have advanced to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the narrow waterway separating the Arabian Peninsula from the Horn of Africa, Reuters reported on Monday.
The advance comes as Yemen's army announced an operation to retake Sanaa, the capital held by the Iran-backed Houthi movement, according to Al Jazeera. The Times of Israel reported separately that Yemen's armed forces retook control of a Red Sea port that Houthi forces had captured last month.
The reports point to a widening government campaign on Yemen's western coast and toward the capital. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait sits on a key shipping route linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, giving the positions strategic weight beyond the immediate fighting.
The material does not specify which units led the advance, how many forces were involved, or the exact locations taken. Reuters did not report casualty figures or a timeline for the Sanaa operation.
The context is a conflict that has drawn in outside powers. A Saudi-led coalition said its fighter jets are bombing the Houthi rebels, the Los Angeles Times reported. The New York Times, in a separate piece, examined why Saudi Arabia's earlier war in Yemen became a quagmire — a reminder that ground gains have often proven difficult to hold.
What to watch next: whether government forces can consolidate control of the coast and whether the announced push toward Sanaa produces fighting in the capital.
