Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces have launched a major offensive against the Iranian-backed Houthis, with both sides claiming territorial gains as battles rage around the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait connecting the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean.
The escalation comes after the Houthis took over the key territory around Bab el-Mandeb in September, one of the world’s most important shipping chokepoints, which has gained particular significance amid disruptions at the Strait of Hormuz caused by the US-Iran war.
On Monday, the Yemeni army claimed to have pushed north along the Red Sea coast toward Mocha, while announcing “a strategic offensive operation on Sanaa,” which serves as the de facto capital of the Houthi movement.
Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, agreed with Türkiye and Pakistan to rapidly deploy military forces under the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, also known as the “Muslim NATO.” The coalition already announced that 100 warplanes are supporting the Yemeni offensive.
The Houthis have denied the government gains, claiming to have made headway around Taiz, some 80km from the Red Sea coast. The group has also retaliated with ballistic missiles and drones against Saudi targets, claiming strikes on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport, military bases, and Aramco oil facilities, including the Rabigh refinery. Saudi Arabia has confirmed damage from Houthi attacks on airports at Jizan and Najran.
The Houthis have consistently accused Riyadh of waging an “aggression” and blockade against Yemen, arguing that Saudi military operations serve US and Israeli interests. Their Yemeni opponents, meanwhile, view Houthis – who identify themselves as part of the “Axis of Resistance” – as “terrorists” and insurgents who overthrew the internationally recognized government in 2014.
The conflict in Yemen in its current form began when the Houthis seized the capital of Sanaa more than a decade ago, prompting a Saudi-led military intervention. However, fighting largely subsided after a 2022 truce.
Amid the fighting in Yemen and continued US-Iran standoff, US President Donald Trump argued that record gas prices are being driven not by disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz but by Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries.
06 October 2026
What is the ‘Muslim NATO’ Mecca defense pact?
The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, signed in August, links Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, and Pakistan under a collective-defense pledge, which treats an armed attack on one member as an attack on all. It has been widely dubbed “Muslim NATO” for its similarity to the Western military bloc’s Article 5.
On Monday, the three countries agreed to implement collective-defense measures and arrange the rapid deployment of military forces and capabilities to Saudi Arabia following Houthi attacks.
However, deployments remain subject to national laws and agreed arrangements. No troop numbers or timetable were announced, and the decision does not confirm Turkish or Pakistani participation in fighting inside Yemen.
Pakistan is “fully on board” with military support for Saudi Arabia and has taken Houthi warnings seriously, veteran Pakistani newspaper editor Kaswar Klasra told RT, pointing to repeated visits by Pakistan’s military chief to Riyadh and Istanbul and Islamabad’s pledge to defend the kingdom.
“The Saudi conflict is not only between Saudi Arabia and Houthis,” Klasra said, arguing that the Mecca pact makes Pakistan a party to the confrontation and also involves Türkiye.
LU
Yemen has become “a kind of Vietnam for Saudi Arabia,” political scientist Dr. Mehmet Rakipoglu told RT, arguing that Riyadh has failed to defeat the Houthis despite a decade of military involvement.
He cautioned that activating the Mecca defense pact does not mean automatic deployment, stressing that Türkiye and Pakistan have agreed to send forces to Saudi Arabia, rather than Yemen.
Rakipoglu described Ankara’s approach as “strategic patience,” arguing that it wants to determine the timing and form of any confrontation on its own terms.
Videos shared by the Houthis purportedly show ballistic strikes against vehicles used by Saudi-backed armed groups in Ras Al-Arah in southern Yemen.
More than 270 Yemeni government troops and Iran-backed Houthi fighters have been killed over the past 24 hours as hostilities escalate, sources on both sides told AFP on Tuesday.
The outlet reported, citing anonymous government officials, that Yemen’s forces lost 115 troops, with dozens more wounded in fighting, as well as Houthi missile and drone attacks.
Senior Houthi political official and spokesperson Mohammed al-Bukhaiti has denied Yemeni government claims of recapturing Mocha and securing Bab el-Mandeb.
He told RT that opposing forces briefly advanced near Dhubab airport, north of the strait, but were subsequently driven back.
“The enemy never reached the Bab el-Mandeb area,” he said, adding that government forces had not entered Mocha either. He argued that the offensive would prompt the Houthis to expand their control around the strait to establish a buffer zone.
Pakistan and Türkiye should stay out of the conflict or face a Houthi response, senior Houthi official Mohammed al-Bukhaiti has told RT following the activation of Islamabad and Ankara’s collective-defense commitments with Saudi Arabia.
“We will be forced to defend ourselves against any participation from any other country, whether Islamic or non-Islamic, Arab or non-Arab,” he said, urging both governments to reconsider and arguing that foreign involvement would not shift the military balance in Riyadh’s favor.
The Houthis will “meet escalation with escalation” and could expand attacks to more Saudi airports, al-Bukhaiti has told RT.
“The door to escalation remains open to target other airports,” he said, urging international airlines to heed warnings for their safety.
He also warned employees of Saudi state oil giant Aramco to stay away from the company’s facilities.