WHAT HAPPENED IN YEMEN OVER THE PAST 24 HOURS? On Wednesday, Saudi-backed Yemeni forces announced th

WHAT HAPPENED IN YEMEN OVER THE PAST 24 HOURS?

On Wednesday, Saudi-backed Yemeni forces announced they had made significant achievements on the ground in the north and central desert areas and appeared to have broken through Houthi lines.

But in reality, the Houthis simply repositioned their forces, giving up the open areas so they could take over the more important western coastline. By Thursday early morning, the Iranian-backed militia seized the strategic coastline and port city of Mocha, after government forces retreated en masse.

And so, rather than an overwhelming blitz by the Saudi-backed forces, the sides essentially swapped territories, with the Houthis gaining the strategic coastline along the Red Sea. This will allow them to pose a more direct threat to shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, thus increasing the threat to Saudi Arabia.