Yemeni forces report 874 strikes as fighting intensifies and claims clash near Bab el-Mandeb

Key Facts

Yemeni government forces said they had carried out 874 strikes on Houthi positions in several governorates as part of Operation Dawn of Yemen, according to a report published by Asharq Al-Awsat on November 11. The report quoted the government military spokesman as saying the operation was taking place as ground fighting continued and attacks and attempted advances were repelled on multiple fronts. The figures announced by the government side included air raids and strikes by drones, rockets and artillery. Separately, a UKMTO update reported competing claims over the Kahboub heights during the period from November 8 to 12. The update did not confirm stable or complete control of the heights, the approaches to Bab el-Mandeb or the main islands.

The military spokesman, as quoted by Asharq Al-Awsat, said the reported strikes comprised 29 air raids, 39 drone strikes, 62 rocket-launcher strikes and 744 artillery strikes. The tally is attributed to government forces, and its description and details were given by a spokesman for one side in the conflict. In western Lahj governorate, the Southern Giants Brigades and Nation’s Shield Forces said they had repelled Houthi attacks on the Al-Bakrah and Al-Ruwais fronts. The report said fighting and military movements had intensified in the neighboring districts of Al-Mudharaba and Ras Al-Arah. Fighting also extended to areas near Tur Al-Bahah, the newspaper said.

Asharq Al-Awsat reported that families from front-line areas had begun fleeing toward Aden and safer areas as fighting approached populated areas. The account is not an overall tally of displaced people, but describes families moving from contact-line areas as reported by the newspaper. In Taiz, clashes involved the Al-Shaqb and Al-Aqroudh fronts, where fighting had entered its sixty-first day when the report was published on November 11. The newspaper quoted military sources as saying the Houthis had not breached defenses on that front. The developments point to fighting spreading between Lahj and Taiz as military movements continue on multiple fronts.

On the maritime front, a UKMTO update said forces linked to Yemen’s internationally recognized government and the Houthis made competing claims over the Kahboub heights during November 8–12. The update described Bab el-Mandeb as volatile but said it remained open to commercial traffic. Ship-tracking data showed an average of about 23 commercial transits a day through the strait between November 8 and 11, compared with about 32 transits a day in the previous week. The assessment rated the threat level in Bab el-Mandeb and the southern Red Sea as substantial, and considered deliberate attacks a strong possibility. That means the passage remained a factor in shipping calculations despite continued commercial traffic through it.

The strait’s role in trade between Asia and Europe underpins its importance amid the clashes. The Associated Press said about 12% of global trade in peacetime passes through Bab el-Mandeb, including a quarter of container traffic between Asia and Europe. In a report published on November 10, the agency quoted the commander of the Atalanta mission as saying the region had seen 79 maritime attacks since the Houthis began attacking ships in November 2023. It said about 30 of those attacks had taken place after the Iran war broke out in February 2026. These figures place maritime tensions in the broader context of the ground fighting underway in Yemen.

Reuters reported on November 2 that the Houthis had advanced to within 80 kilometers of Aden, citing four military sources. The report said the advance threatened strategic positions on the main road linking Aden with the besieged city of Taiz, describing the road as a vital lifeline for southwestern Yemen. That information relates to the early November report, while subsequent developments focus on fighting on the Lahj and Taiz fronts and competing claims over Kahboub. In a humanitarian backdrop reported by the Associated Press, more than 184,000 people had been displaced by fighting from the start of August through its report published in October, according to the International Organization for Migration. The agency said nearly 22,000 people were displaced between September 27 and October 3, up 26% from the previous week.