Yemen Forces Strike Houthis in Marib and Taiz as Rebels Seize 12-Mile-Wide Mayyun Strait Island
Updated
Updated · Al Jazeera English · Sep 14
Yemen Forces Strike Houthis in Marib and Taiz as Rebels Seize 12-Mile-Wide Mayyun Strait Island
3 articles · Updated · Al Jazeera English · Sep 14
Summary
Yemen’s government forces launched air strikes and a counteroffensive in Marib and western Taiz after Houthi gains over the past week, with army video showing rebel positions and vehicles hit.
Marib has become the pivotal front because it is the government’s last northern stronghold and holds Yemen’s largest oil and gas fields; analysts say losing it could decisively shift the war.
On the Red Sea coast, the Houthis have also seized Mayyun Island in the Bab al-Mandeb strait after taking Mocha last week, extending their reach toward a route that once carried about 12% of global trade.
More than 85,000 people have been displaced since the start of September, according to the IOM, and over 2,000 have fled across the water to Djibouti as fighting spreads.
Control of Taiz and the Bab al-Mandeb corridor would strengthen Houthi supply lines, propaganda and negotiating leverage while deepening Saudi concerns over Red Sea oil exports.
Could the Houthi advance on Marib and the Red Sea trigger a severe global energy crisis?
Are the recent Houthi maritime embargoes the final spark needed to completely sever the Bab al-Mandeb trade artery?
Will the impending siege of two million displaced civilians in Marib force an unprecedented international intervention?
The 2026 Yemen Red Sea Crisis: Houthi Advances, Global Oil Disruption, and the Collapse of Saudi Maritime Security
Overview
In September 2026, the Yemen conflict escalated sharply as Iran-backed Houthi rebels, guided and supported by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, launched a rapid offensive along the Red Sea coast. This allowed the Houthis to seize key maritime chokepoints, creating a dual-chokepoint crisis with the already closed Strait of Hormuz. As a result, Saudi Arabia was forced to reroute oil exports, but soon faced a targeted Houthi maritime embargo and devastating attacks on its energy infrastructure. The disruption sent global oil prices soaring and triggered a humanitarian disaster, with mass displacement and severe shortages, while exposing deep fractures within Yemen’s anti-Houthi coalition.