Saudi-backed Yemeni forces captured Dhubab Airport and Al Omari Base along Yemen's western coast on October 5, with fighting now reaching Mokha, according to Open Source Intel, a Middle East monitoring account. The advance threatens the Iranian-backed Houthis' remaining positions along the southern Red Sea coast and Bab el-Mandeb, the strategic strait the militia has used to attack Red Sea shipping.
The Dhubab to Mokha road has been cut, with Houthi forces surrounded in Dhubab, according to the same source. Government forces are also advancing in Marib and Al Jawf under heavy Saudi air cover. Mokha's loss would significantly weaken the Houthis' ability to threaten the vital waterway connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, through which Israeli-bound vessels pass.
