Saudi-led coalition strikes hundreds of Houthis targets

RIYADH/ ADEN  –  The Saudi-led Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen said Monday that 100 fighter jets took part in the opening hours of Operation Dawn of Yemen, as it intensified air support for Yemeni government forces seeking to retake state institutions and territory held by the Houthis.

Coalition spokesman Maj Gen Turki Al-Maliki said 324 “high-value targets” had been destroyed since the operation began.

“100 fighter jets participated at dawn today in Operation Dawn of Yemen,” Al-Maliki said in posts on X, adding that the coalition was providing round-the-clock air support to Yemeni armed forces on the ground.

PM approves duty-free livestock imports for specialised farms to boost exports

He said coalition air forces were also securing the Bab Al-Mandab Strait, a strategic maritime passage linking the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, while operations against moving targets were continuing.

The coalition’s military support comes after Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad Al-Alimi announced the start of military operations to retake remaining territory outside government control and restore state authority across the country.

Al-Alimi said the decision followed the exhaustion of opportunities for de-escalation and continued Houthi threats to Yemen’s sovereignty, civilians and international shipping lanes.

Makkah Alliance activates collective deterrence

On Monday, Al-Alimi formally announced the launch of Operation Dawn of Yemen, saying its objectives were to restore state institutions, retake the capital Sanaa and end the Houthi takeover.

He said the operation was being carried out by Yemen’s armed forces and military formations with support from regional and international partners.

The Coalition’s Joint Forces Command said Sunday it would continue providing “full operational support” to Yemeni government forces, linking its military measures to the protection of Saudi Arabia’s security as well as regional and international security amid Houthi attacks and attempts to target vessels in the southern Red Sea and Bab Al-Mandab.

A T20 match is set to begin, KP CM warns Centre

Securing Bab Al-Mandab is a central element of the current operation as fighting intensifies around strategic areas overlooking the Red Sea and risks to international shipping and trade increase.

The operation also coincides with escalating fighting in Taiz, where government forces and the Houthis are battling over key routes connecting the city with government-held areas to the south.

Yemeni government forces took control of the strategic Bab Al-Mandab area from the Houthis on Monday as part of the ongoing Operation Dawn of Yemen, the military said.

UN Chief Antonio Guterres arrives in Pakistan today

Military spokesman Lt. Col. Majid Abdullah Al-Nuzayli said the pro-government Southern Giants Brigades and Nation’s Shield forces had “successfully taken control of Bab Al-Mandab.”

In a series of statements on X, Al-Nuzayli said government forces also seized Dhubab airport and cut the road linking Dhubab and Mokha.

He said hundreds of Houthi fighters had been surrounded in the Dhubab area and called on them to surrender.

Al-Nuzayli later said some Houthi fighters had fled the area by boat. There was no immediate comment from the Houthis on the army’s claims.

The advances are part of Operation Dawn of Yemen, launched by the Yemeni government to retake territory and state institutions under Houthi control.

Bab Al-Mandab is a strategically vital waterway connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea and serves as a major route for international shipping.

Yemeni pro-government forces recaptured the strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha from the Houthis on Monday following fierce fighting, state news agency SABA reported.

The Nation’s Shield Forces, Southern Giants Brigades and Tihama Resistance, backed by the Popular Resistance, took control of the city with air support, a military source told SABA.

The source said the Houthis had controlled Mokha, in western Taiz province, since early September.

Fierce clashes erupted at several positions surrounding the city, involving various types of weapons and leaving a number of Houthi fighters dead and wounded, according to the source.

Government forces also captured several Houthi fighters, while others fled the area, the source said, without providing casualty or prisoner figures.

The advance comes amid an expanding government offensive against the Houthis under Operation Dawn of Yemen, with fighting intensifying across several fronts.

NIPCO House, 4 – Shaharah e Fatima Jinnah,

Tel: +92 42 36367580    |     Fax : +92 42 36367005