Iran-backed Houthis seize island at entrance to Red Sea, threatening Saudi oil exports

Amna Nawaz:

In the day's other headlines: Houthi rebels in Yemen consolidated lightning gains across the country's Western coast. The group recently resumed fighting with the Saudi-backed government, saying at least 82 people have been killed or wounded in recent Saudi-led attacks.

The Houthis have extended their hold on a crucial choke point at the southern reaches of the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

Ali Rogin has our update.

Ali Rogin:

In one of the most watched waterways in the world today, Yemen's Houthi fighters captured the strategic island of Mayun. It's volcanic, nearly empty, and for the first time in years, Houthi-controlled. They didn't even have to fight for it. Overnight, Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces slipped away.

Man (through interpreter):

Now we now we place a chain from there to there.

Ali Rogin:

A chain that could cripple global trade.

It started here in Mokha yesterday, the Red Sea port where Saudi-backed forces collapsed in a single day. Today, Houthis control it for the first time in a decade. Saudi Arabia hit back, striking its airport. But Saudi Arabia also wanted American help.

A person familiar tells "PBS News Hour" the kingdom formally requested U.S. airstrikes. The U.S. consistently helps Riyadh militarily, but has not yet agreed to launch airstrikes.

For Mokha, Houthi fighters pushed south and reached Mayun today. Together, Mokha and Mayun give the Houthis something they have never fully controlled, both shores of the Bab al-Mandab Strait that carries roughly a 10th of the world's trade. It matters even more now with Iran and the U.S. battling over the Strait of Hormuz.

The Houthis say they're only blocking Saudi ships.

Yahya Saree, Houthi Spokesman (through interpreter):

The Yemeni armed forces affirm that maritime navigation is safe for all companies except for Saudi vessels. We will continue and meet escalation with escalation until the aggression stops and the blockade on our dear people is lifted.

Ali Rogin:

But, tonight, Saudi Arabia's own lifeline may already be burning. Satellite data from Saudi Arabia shows black smoke rising near the East-West Pipeline, Riyadh's only route to move oil away from the Strait of Hormuz. The kingdom said it shut it down as a precautionary measure following the attack.

A regional official told the "News Hour" it was not the Houthis, but an Iran-backed Shia militia in Iraq, that launched the attack. Tonight, even away from the coast, the signs of escalation keep coming. Houthi media circulated this footage, which they say shows the wreckage of a Saudi drone shot down as tensions continue to escalate.

Two choke points choking not just trade and oil flows, but the chance at a swift resolution to this wider war.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Ali Rogin.