Yemeni forces battle Houthi offensive near Red Sea coast as death toll passes 120

Clashes and casualty counts across the southwest

Heavy fighting erupted across southwestern Yemen on Thursday, 3 September 2026, after Houthi forces launched a broad land offensive supported by rocket barrages and drone strikes along the Red Sea coast. The combat centered on western Taiz and southern Hodeidah, resulting in the deadliest confrontation between the two sides in several years. By Friday, 4 September 2026, the total death toll exceeded 120 people according to military and medical counts reported by AFP, rising from an earlier estimate of more than 80 dead. Government casualties climbed from an initial 39 to 66 troops and allied fighters, with specific losses including 24 personnel killed near the coast and 15 killed in Taiz. On the rebel side, medical sources recorded at least 62 Houthi deaths, after initial reports in Houthi-controlled territory logged 42 fatalities. Civilian casualties also occurred, including fatalities from a ballistic missile strike on a restaurant in al-Makha reported by Saba TV.

Strategic drive toward Bab al-Mandeb and al-Makha

The Houthi assault aimed to seize elevated territory overlooking the Red Sea coast and the Bab al-Mandeb strait, a 30-kilometer-wide maritime chokepoint running between Yemen and Djibouti that connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. Government military sources told AFP that rebel units attempted to encircle and isolate the government-held port city of al-Makha from adjacent territories. Houthi fighters captured elevated firing positions above government lines near the Red Sea, the coastal town of al-Khokha, and inland areas around Taiz. Controlling these hills would allow rebel units to target commercial and naval vessels moving through the waterway. Houthi forces had previously occupied al-Makha before being pushed out in 2017 by Yemeni government troops and a Saudi-led military coalition. Al Jazeera journalist Yousef Mawry reported from Sanaa that the rebels sought to advance toward the port to establish tactical leverage for wider regional confrontations.

Government counterattacks and regional troop mobilisations

To resist the Houthi advance, the internationally recognised Yemeni government mobilised reinforcements from its southern administrative seat in Aden and deployed them to the front lines in Taiz. A government official in Aden confirmed that this troop mobilisation was initiated upon a direct request from Saudi Arabia. On Friday, Yemeni government forces executed counterattacks and recaptured the al-Khazan and al-Makahna hills in the Jabal Habashi district west of Taiz city. Despite these territorial recoveries, Houthi fighters retained control over several positions seized on Thursday, including a strategic military base in western Taiz. State-run Saba news reported that additional government reinforcements continued to arrive along the coastal front to stabilise defensive perimeters.

Maritime blockades and alternative oil routes

The outbreak of violence ends the truce established in 2022, which collapsed following Israeli and American strikes against Iran and subsequent regional military friction. In late July 2026, Houthi authorities declared a naval blockade against Saudi vessels navigating through Bab al-Mandeb. Over the past month, the group conducted missile and drone attacks against Saudi targets, including oil tankers and cargo trucks. The Bab al-Mandeb strait has become the only accessible sea corridor for Saudi Arabia, the world's leading crude exporter, after Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz on the eastern side of the Arabian Peninsula in late February 2026. While the Houthis currently control the northern port of Hodeidah, they do not hold land directly bordering Bab al-Mandeb, leaving al-Makha and the southern coastline as contested strategic territory.