File image.
Yemen’s Houthis (Ansar Allah) have captured Perim Island, also known as Mayyun, advancing to one of the most strategically important positions in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait as the group pushes south along Yemen’s Red Sea coast, according to reports on September 11 from AFP and other news agencies.
The reported seizure of the island comes a day after the Houthis captured the port city of Mokha and amid a rapid advance toward Dhubab.
Reuters even reported on September 11 that the group’s forces have already reached Dhubab, which lies directly opposite Perim.
Perim is particularly important because of its location in the middle of the Bab el-Mandeb, the narrow maritime gateway connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the wider Indian Ocean. The island effectively divides the strait into two channels and sits close to the principal shipping routes linking the Suez Canal with Asian and European markets.
The island is small and largely barren, but its position gives whoever controls it a valuable vantage point over vessels moving through the strait. It also offers a potential base for surveillance and, depending on the military assets deployed there, could support efforts to threaten or restrict maritime traffic.
That significance has made Perim a long-standing military objective. Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces have maintained positions on the island, while successive regional military campaigns have sought to prevent the Houthis from establishing a permanent presence there. The island also has an airstrip.
The capture of the island therefore represent more than another territorial gain in Yemen’s renewed fighting. It gives the Houthis a position inside the Bab el-Mandeb itself, rather than merely on the approaches to the strait.
The development follows a rapid Houthi offensive along Yemen’s western coastline. The group captured Mokha on September 10 after government-aligned forces withdrew from the city.
The Houthis have also advanced toward the southern Red Sea and reportedly seized Zuqar Island, while fighting has spread around the Hanish Islands.
With Perim under their control, the Houthis now have positions on both the mainland approach to Bab el-Mandeb and an island located within the strait itself.
The timing is particularly significant because Bab el-Mandeb has become even more important to the regional energy trade after disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz. Reuters estimates that around 7 percent of global oil output passes through Bab el-Mandeb, while the waterway is also a major route for container traffic between Asia and Europe.
For the Yemeni government and Saudi Arabia, the capture of Perim marks a major strategic setback. With the Houthis still advancing, the worst for the Saudi-led coalition may be yet to come.
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