Al-Mukha Port, near the Bab al-Mandab Strait linking Yemen’s Red Sea coast with the Gulf of Aden, halted operations following attacks last week. Yemen’s Transport Minister Muhsin al-Umari said the attacks destroyed the port’s infrastructure as well as boats and ships anchored there.
In remarks to Yemen’s official Saba news agency, al-Umari said ballistic missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles and explosive-laden boats were used in the attacks. The attacks also affected warehouses, administrative buildings and residential areas.
Seven people killed
A statement issued after last week’s attacks said seven people had been killed, including four facility security guards and three port workers. The port’s facilities and equipment sustained extensive damage, and maritime and commercial operations halted.
Umari said civilians working at the port, cargo owners, sailors and ship crew members were among those killed. Reports by the Yemeni government put the material losses caused by the attacks at approximately $16 million.
Located in Taiz governorate, Al-Mukha Port has been targeted by missile and drone attacks since August 9. The attacks were described as the first large-scale strikes since the truce between the government and the Houthis began in 2022. According to Yemeni government reports, the port had previously been targeted multiple times and its operations had come to a complete halt.
Emphasis on maritime security in Bab al-Mandab
Recalling that Yemen has coastlines on the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, Umari said the country’s location placed greater responsibility on Yemen to protect international maritime transport and safeguard its interests.
Umari said a significant portion of global maritime trade and energy shipments passes through the Bab al-Mandab Strait. He said the stability of the route was closely linked to freedom of navigation, the protection of maritime links and the fight against maritime crime in the region.
Umari said no regional maritime security framework could be fully effective without the active and regular participation of the state that controls the strait.
Fighting intensifies again in Yemen
A truce has been in place between the parties to Yemen’s war, which began approximately 12 years ago, since April 2022. The Houthis control parts of the country, including the capital, Sanaa, as well as several cities and governorates. Fighting between the parties has intensified again in recent weeks in the governorates of Marib, Al-Jawf, Al-Dhale and Taiz.
Yemen is facing a severe humanitarian and economic crisis in addition to the fighting. The coalition supporting government forces operates under Saudi Arabia’s leadership, while Iran has been accused of supporting the Houthis.
The Houthis announced in July that they had declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia.
