Middle East — 2026-09-12

Houthis Seize Perim Island in Amphibious Assault Gaining Strategic Foothold Over Bab el-Mandeb

BLUFHouthi control of both shores of Bab el-Mandeb gives Iran a chokepoint lever it can activate without direct confrontation, and a Saudi military effort to reverse these losses by October 12 is unlikely.

Houthi rebels captured Perim Island, also known as Mayun, at the southern entrance to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Friday, according to a senior Yemeni government military official and a Houthi official who both spoke to the Associated Press 1. The seizure followed Thursday's capture of the Red Sea port of Mokha, and UPI reported the Houthis also took the town of Dhubab and the coastal village of Murad, giving the group control of the entire Yemeni coastline 2. Saudi Arabia struck the airport at Mokha in response, a Houthi broadcaster said, with no reported damage or casualties 1. USNI News reported the advance coincides with an escalating US-Iran confrontation in which US Central Command says it has destroyed 10 Iranian tankers after attempted Iranian strikes on US warships, and that Saudi Arabia's Energy Ministry has suspended its East-West oil pipeline as a precaution 3.

Analysis
Control of Mokha and Mayun gives the Houthis both shores of Bab el-Mandeb, handing Iran leverage to threaten Saudi Red Sea export routes without formally rejoining the anti-shipping campaign. Convergent, independently sourced reporting from NPR, France 24, and UPI, plus distinct maritime-security context from USNI News, supports high confidence that Riyadh has so far declined to strike advancing Houthi forces even as Mokha fell within artillery range of the strait. A Saudi ground or amphibious effort to retake Perim or other lost coastal positions by October 12 is unlikely absent a US green light for expanded air operations; Riyadh's restraint may equally reflect a calculated bet on negotiation rather than an inability to respond. Washington must now decide whether to authorize a Saudi air campaign risking wider war with Iran, while oil shippers and insurers face pricing in indefinite Houthi control of the strait's southern approach if it does not.

4 sources