Bab el-Mandeb in Houthis’ control: Yemeni official
A Yemeni official has denied reports suggesting that loyalists to former Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, backed by Saudi Arabia, have captured the Bab el-Mandeb Strait from Houthi Ansarullah fighters.
According to a report by the Lebanese al-Mayadeen news network on Saturday, an unnamed Yemeni official said that the Hadi loyalists had only reached the Khor Omaira area and not the strategic strait.
The reports added that the Yemeni army forces and allied popular committees had foiled attacks by Saudi-backed forces launched from Lahij Province’s al-Sabiha district against Bab el-Mandeb.
Tens of Saudi-backed forces were reportedly killed and wounded in the confrontation.
This comes shortly after Turkish news sources cited a former fugitive Yemeni official as claiming that Saudi army troops and the supporters of Hadi had established control over Bab el-Mandeb and Mayoun Island.
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is considered strategically important as it separates the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa and links the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
Yemen has been the target of Saudi military strikes since March 26. The aggression, which has not received a United Nations mandate, aims to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and restore power to Saudi ally and fugitive former Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.
About 6,400 people, including some 500 children, have reportedly lost their lives since March. A total of nearly 14,000 people have been injured.
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