At dawn on Monday, 5 October 2026, Yemen's government forces launched a wide-ranging military operation called Yemen Dawn, aimed at restoring state institutions and retaking the capital, Sana'a, ending what the government describes as the “coup by the Houthi militias”, and targeting the group's capabilities and fighters on several fronts.
Previous escalation paved the way for the operation
The operation was launched after a military escalation began between the government forces and the Houthis in July 2026, described as the most extensive since the relative calm that followed the April 2022 truce. Fighting intensified during September, when the Houthis seized key positions in the governorates of Hodeidah and Taiz, including the city of Mokha and Mayyun Island overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
One day before the operation began, Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad al-Alimi announced what state television called “zero hour” to liberate the rest of the country's territory under Houthi control. The Yemeni government accuses Iran of supporting and arming the group. Alimi's announcement coincided with the Houthi forces saying they had made advances in the rural areas of Taiz governorate in south-western Yemen.
Air participation and securing Bab al-Mandab
The operation involved 100 fighter jets belonging to the coalition led by Saudi Arabia. In a statement, the coalition said the air participation aimed to protect the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a passage linked to international shipping routes in the Red Sea. During the first days, the government forces said they had carried out 1,122 strikes on the fronts in Saada, Al Jawf, Taiz and the western coast.
In their statements, they said the operations had “neutralised” 1,747 Houthis, in addition to destroying or disabling 364 military vehicles and items of equipment. The Saudi-led coalition also announced the destruction of 324 targets it described as “high-value”. On the western coast front, the government forces said they had taken control of Dhu Bab district, its airport and strategic positions around Bab al-Mandab, and cut the road linking Dhu Bab with the city of Mokha.
The Houthis, by contrast, denied that the government forces had made any advances in the area. In a subsequent development, the Nation's Shield Forces, Giants Brigades and Tihama Resistance, supported by popular resistance forces and air cover, announced that they had retaken the city of Mokha after heavy fighting. They added that their forces continued to comb the city's neighbourhoods and facilities.
Mokha is important because of its proximity to the Bab al-Mandab Strait and international shipping routes in the Red Sea. The operation coincided with clashes in eastern and western Taiz and the governorate's countryside, accompanied by artillery shelling, air strikes and the displacement of residents. Yemen's assistant defence minister, Major General Samir Sabri, said the operation's first phase focused on securing Bab al-Mandab, Mokha and its port, alongside operations in other governorates.
A US official confirmed that Washington was providing Saudi Arabia with support including planning, intelligence-sharing and refuelling. He added that around 200 US advisers were working inside planning centres in the kingdom, but denied that US forces were directly participating in the war in Yemen.
