Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi fighters reached Perim Island after advances along the Red Sea coast, bringing them into the Bab el‑Mandeb Strait and heightening risks to a major global shipping route and oil supplies.
Houthi forces reached Perim Island and seized nearby coastal towns, following the withdrawal of Yemeni government forces.
Control of the Bab el‑Mandeb Strait could disrupt a major oil and shipping corridor and amplify regional energy market pressure.
# What happened
# Why Perim matters
Perim sits at the mouth of the Red Sea where it narrows into the Bab el‑Mandeb Strait. That strait is one of the world's key shipping chokepoints linking the Red Sea and Suez Canal to the Indian Ocean. If the Houthis establish effective control of the strait, it would threaten transit through a major corridor used for oil and other global trade.
# Military and political dynamics
Yemeni and regional sources cited by Reuters said Iran's Revolutionary Guards provided direct guidance to the Houthi offensive, including urging escalation against Saudi Arabia and promising funding, weapons, and senior officers. Iran publicly denies directing the Houthis, calling them "not a proxy." The Reuters piece reports these allegations but does not provide independent verification.
# Regional and international responses
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman reportedly called U.S. President Donald Trump and asked for strikes on Houthi positions. Axios reported that Trump rejected those calls and that the U.S. does not intend direct military action against the Houthis at this time. The U.S. has been increasing support for Saudi Arabia while seeking to avoid direct involvement, according to the Axios report.
Times reported — unverified in the Reuters story — that Gulf foreign ministers were trying to arrange a temporary deal to manage shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, with a planned meeting in Oman. Reuters could not immediately verify that report.
# Immediate implications
# What to watch next
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis reached the strategic island of Perim in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Friday, four Yemeni government sources told Reuters, moving to tighten their grip on a vital global shipping route in the widening Middle East war. Earlier, two sources from the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised Yem
Yemen’s Houthi movement seized Perim Island, at the narrowest point of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, on September 11, 2026, after Yemeni government forces withdrew from the island a day earlier. Four Yemeni government sources told Reuters that Houthi fighters reached the island, also known as Mayyun, tightening the group’s
The Houthis in Yemen have seized Perim Island, a parcel of land that lies in the Red Sea in an amphibious assault, giving the Iranian-backed group a strategic foothold over the Bab el-Mandeb. The Houthis’ push this week – first taking Mocha on the Red Sea’s North Coast, then Perim Island – coincides with escalating ten
Yemen’s Houthi movement has reached Perim Island at the mouth of the Red Sea after seizing the port of Mocha, extending an offensive that has brought its forces to one of the main shipping routes between Asia and Europe. Four Yemeni government sources told Reuters on Friday that Houthi forces had reached Perim, also kn
ADEN/DUBAI >> Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis reached the strategic island of Perim in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait today, four Yemeni government sources told Reuters, moving to tighten their grip on a vital global shipping route in the widening Middle East war.
Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militants have seized control of the historic port city of Mocha, four government military sources said, ina strategic shift that could threaten the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world's most important shipping…
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