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Pro-govt forces besieging Yemen's Mocha but yet to recapture it: military sources
Pro-govt forces besieging Yemen's Mocha but yet to recapture it: military sources
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Yemeni military sources said pro-government forces had cut off the only supply route to the Houthi-held city of Mocha on Monday, but stopped short of confirming an official announcement of the port's recapture.
The Houthis, who are fighting the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government, seized the historic port city during a lightning offensive last month, extending their control over all of Yemen's Red Sea coast.
The Iran-backed group seized Yemen's capital Sanaa in 2014, sparking a brutal civil war that had been frozen since a 2022 ceasefire but reignited in July.
The government has announced a major counteroffensive, backed by the Saudi-led coalition that has supported it since 2015.
Earlier on Monday, the Aden-based government said its forces "were able to take control" of Mocha, while sweeping operations continued.
But sources from the government's military would not confirm the capture.
Instead, they said "our forces took control of the Dhubab military airfield and cut the road linking the Dhubab district to the Bab al-Mandab area", referring to the strategic strait at the mouth of the Red Sea which the Houthis now effectively control.
The sources added that they were working to "consolidate our positions, and our objective is to advance to retake Mocha and besiege the Houthis stationed in Bab al-Mandab".
The Giants Brigades, a pro-government force, confirmed the "cutting of the main road linking Mocha and Bab al-Mandab", as well as the imposition of "a tight siege" with the intention of recapturing the area.
The region is significant for global shipping as it represents the gateway to the Suez Canal, while the Red Sea has become vital for Saudi oil exports ever since Iran throttled the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane out of the Gulf.
The Houthis have yet to comment on the reports.
The group already controlled most of Yemen's most populated areas, concentrated in the northwest of the country, but surged southwards in September.
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This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
