The Houthis Have Seized A Key Island In The Bab El-Mandeb Strait
- 12.09.2026, 9:15
After Trump refused to launch strikes against them.
The Yemeni Houthis, who are supported by Iran, have reached Perim Island—an important strategic location from which the narrow passage into the Red Sea can be controlled—according to sources in Yemen’s internationally recognized government. The Houthis themselves have not yet claimed to have captured the island, according to the BBC.
This island divides the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which serves as the southern gateway to the trade route connecting Asia and Europe. Four sources within the Yemeni government told Reuters that the Houthis had “reached” the island.
Earlier, two sources from the internationally recognized Yemeni government—which is backed by Saudi Arabia—told the agency that government forces had abandoned Perim Island, while the Houthis captured the city of Zubab, located on the Red Sea coast opposite the island.
CNN also reported the capture of the island, citing sources in the Yemeni government. A day earlier, according to the country’s information minister, Houthi fighters had taken control of the port city of Mocha.
“Boats carrying armed Houthi fighters arrived on Mayun Island after government troops withdrew from it yesterday,” a government spokesperson told AFP. Mayun is another name for Perim Island. Houthi rebels “took control” of the island, the agency’s source said.
As of now, there has been no confirmation from the Houthis that they have reached Perim Island. A spokesperson for the Houthi armed forces Yahya Saria wrote on his Telegram channel that the group would later announce a “large-scale military operation with serious consequences.”
This news has sparked serious concern regarding the potential implications for global shipping, CNN reports. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which serves as a gateway on the route between Asia and Europe via the Suez Canal, is a geopolitically critical point, much like the Strait of Hormuz.
If the Houthis establish full control over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, located on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz, this could give their patron—Iran—a decisive advantage in its standoff with the U.S., Reuters reports. Shipments through this second-most-important transport corridor will decline, and oil prices will skyrocket, the agency predicts.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, has shifted to a route through the Red Sea after the Strait of Hormuz—through which one-fifth of the world’s oil flow previously passed—was effectively closed due to the U.S.-Iran conflict. The state-owned oil company Aramco has increased the volume of crude oil transported via the pipeline from the eastern coast of Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea in the west.
This week, global oil prices once again exceeded $100 per barrel following renewed exchanges of strikes between the U.S. and Iran. Both countries claimed to have carried out attacks on oil tankers. Tehran also once again attacked a military base in Jordan where U.S. troops are stationed.
On Friday, oil prices fell slightly following reports from sources at the Financial Times that foreign ministers from Middle Eastern countries were attempting to reach a temporary agreement on regulating shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Yemeni government forces have declared their intention to retake territories seized by the Houthis during a rapid offensive launched this week along the Red Sea coast, Reuters reports.
It was announced that weapons and aircraft would be deployed to prevent any movements by “terrorist” Houthi units in strategically important areas, including the road to the coastal city of Mocha, which the group had captured the day before. A spokesperson for the Yemeni armed forces urged civilians not to use the road between the cities of Taiz and Mocha and to stay away from Houthi vehicles.
On Thursday, Reuters sources reported that the Houthis’ rapid advance along the Red Sea coast this week was carried out under the direct leadership of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Sources interviewed by the agency, including those in Tehran, said that Iran is seeking to open a new front in its confrontation with the United States.
Iranian sources cited by the publication claim that Tehran has promised to provide the Houthis with additional funding and weapons, as well as to send senior officers to support their military operations (Iran refers to the Houthis as its allies but denies exercising military command over them).
Following this, as Axios has learned, the Saudi Arabian authorities asked the U.S. for the American military to launch a strike against the Houthis.
According to the publication, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called President Donald Trump twice on Thursday, urging him to launch strikes as the group’s fighters were approaching the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
Axios sources claim that Trump refused, as his administration seeks to avoid direct intervention in the conflict with the Houthis.
At the same time, the publication reports, the United States is concerned about the rapid escalation of hostilities in Yemen and is stepping up its support for Saudi Arabia, while seeking to avoid direct military intervention. According to the report, the commander of U.S. Central Command Brad Cooper arrived in Saudi Arabia on Thursday for urgent consultations.
The standoff between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis escalated in July after Riyadh struck a Houthi-controlled airport in Yemen’s capital to prevent an Iranian plane from landing, on which high-ranking Houthi officials were returning from the funeral of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
In response, the Houthis attacked Saudi tankers in the Red Sea, and Saudi Arabia and its Yemeni allies retaliated with airstrikes and ground offensives against Houthi positions.
According to Axios, Saudi Arabia’s request for direct U.S. military intervention represents a sharp change of course compared to July, when Riyadh assured Washington that it was capable of dealing with the Houthis on its own.
On Thursday, as Houthi forces advanced on the coastal city of Mocha and Saudi-backed Yemeni units retreated, the crown prince called Trump to report on the deteriorating situation, sources told the publication. A few hours later, the prince called again and urged him to order U.S. strikes on Houthi positions.
Trump refused, but a U.S. administration official stated that Washington would provide Saudi Arabia with intelligence on the Houthis and targeting information, the publication reports. Its source reported that there are already about 200 U.S. military personnel in Saudi Arabia providing support unrelated to direct combat operations.