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The Iranian-backed Houthi rebels seized a strategic Red Sea island and the port city of Mokha in Yemen.

The Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have captured the strategic port city of Mokha and a key island in the Bab al-Mandab Strait. This advance places the rebels within 50 miles of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a vital global energy chokepoint. The capture of the island, also known as Perim, and the port city of Mokha, represents the rebels' biggest territorial gain in years. Saudi Arabia responded to the Houthi advance with dozens of retaliatory airstrikes, including hits on the Mokha airport. President Trump rejected pleas from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to strike the Houthi forces directly. Instead, the administration will provide the Saudis with intelligence and targeting data while maintaining a presence of over 200 U.S. military personnel in Saudi Arabia. The escalation has displaced at least 46,000 people, with the number rising rapidly. The International Organization for Migration warned that as fighting spreads, reaching people with lifesaving assistance is becoming harder. Iran's foreign ministry called for an end to the Saudi blockade of Yemen and the immediate resumption of negotiations.

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