Yemeni government forces announced that they had taken control of Al Manzara, Al Asharif and Dhiban mountains in the Hayfan area south of Taiz governorate, as part of a military operation against the Ansar Allah Houthi movement, while movements and clashes extended to several fronts. Meanwhile, the movement's military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said the Houthis continued to retain their battlefield gains.
Government forces advance towards Al Wazi'iyah
The developments came after government forces announced that, over the previous 48 hours, they had retaken positions in the Bab al Mandab area, specifically in Dhu Bab, while advancing along other axes towards Al Wazi'iyah district. There has also been talk of subsequent military movements towards Al Khokha in Hudaydah governorate, as part of an operations route extending along the western coast.
Abdul Qader Arada said government forces were seeking to build on their movements in Dhu Bab and Bab al Mandab and link them to advances along the axes near Al Wazi'iyah. The district has military significance because of its proximity to Dhu Bab, with an estimated 50 kilometres separating the two areas, as well as the surrounding high ground overlooking key routes and areas around the city of Mokha.
According to the field information, the advance towards Al Wazi'iyah is linked to the government forces' attempt to secure the positions they say they retook along the coastal strip and prepare for a new movement towards Mokha. The high terrain surrounding the district controls key routes, making control of it an influential factor in consolidating any advance along the coast.
Taiz clashes and securing supply routes
In Taiz governorate, military movements are concentrated along the Hayfan, Bani Yusuf, Jabal Habashi and Al Aqroud axes. Government forces said they had repelled Houthi attempts to advance, while retaking positions in the Dhiban area and other areas north of these axes. Those areas witnessed continued clashes between the two sides amid rugged mountainous terrain that has increased the complexity of military operations.
Vital routes linking Taiz with the southern areas also pass through the region, giving the clashes significance beyond control of local positions to securing movement and supply lines between the governorate and its surroundings. Movements also extended to the Marib and Al Jawf fronts, where government forces said they were fighting on several axes, including Ragwan and the Hailan mountains.
They said they had repelled a Houthi attempt to advance from the Quron Al Bour area, while also reporting progress towards the strategically important Um Rish camp. Government forces also said that the Al Labanat camp had come under attack.
Clashes expand on the Marib and Al Jawf fronts
The Marib front witnessed military movements at a higher pace than in the previous hours, particularly along the southern and north-western axes, as simultaneous clashes expanded across more than one governorate. Military and strategic expert Brigadier General Hassan Jouni said the developments were taking place within a broad theatre of war in Yemen, where an intermittent front line extends for around 1,000 kilometres between areas where government forces are deployed and areas under Houthi control.
Regarding Mokha, Jouni pointed to uncertainty over which side actually controls the city, despite the government forces' announcement that they had taken control of it. He said resolving Mokha's status militarily was linked to control of the chain of highlands extending through Al Wazi'iyah, Al Kadha and Maqbanah, south-west of Taiz.
Jouni said government forces had achieved a breakthrough in the coastal area from the highlands of Jabal Kahboub, which had been under their control, before moving towards Dhu Bab and Bab al Mandab. In his assessment, this route enabled them to expand their advance along the coast and link the new positions with areas where they had previously been stationed.
He considered control of the chain of highlands in and around Al Wazi'iyah to be a key element in any move towards Mokha, and said the battle for Al Wazi'iyah appeared to be a prelude to an advance towards the city. He added that the road extending from Mokha towards Al Khokha and Hays could become a potential route for operations if government forces managed to consolidate their control over Mokha.
Shifting initiative between the coast and Taiz
The nature of the fighting differs between the coastal front and Taiz's inland mountainous areas. According to Jouni, government forces hold the initiative along the coast, while the Houthis retain the initiative to a large extent inside Taiz, reflecting a relative balance in the two sides' ability to manoeuvre and open fronts.
The military expert said Taiz city and its surroundings were under pressure from the Houthis, who he said were seeking to cut the road linking Taiz and Aden. He linked this to the continued clashes around Hayfan and the Al Turbah area, where the battles are connected to control of movement routes between Taiz and the southern areas.
Current operations are divided between the western coast, where government forces are seeking to consolidate their gains and advance towards Mokha, and the inland Taiz front, where clashes continue in mountainous areas. The Marib and Al Jawf fronts also witnessed movements and clashes in recent hours, indicating an expansion in the scope of the escalation on the ground.
These developments come amid a military escalation that began last July and was described as the broadest since the period of relative calm in Yemen following a truce that began in April 2022.
The pace of fighting accelerated last September, when the Houthis took control of vital positions in Hudaydah and Taiz governorates, including the strategic city of Mokha, and their advance reached Mayyun Island overlooking the Bab al Mandab Strait.
