Yemen's internationally recognised government has launched a major military campaign called “Yemen Dawn” against Iran-backed Houthi rebels, with a Saudi-led coalition providing air support as the rebels make fresh territorial gains along the country's Red Sea coast.
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rebels → recognise → coast
Presidential Leadership Council chairman Rashad al-Alimi said the operation was aimed at “restoring state institutions, liberating" Sanaa, Yemen's rebel-controlled capital, and ending "the Houthi terrorist militia coup.”
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operation → say → coup
Saudi military spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki said the coalition was providing “full operational support” to government forces.
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coalition → say → forces
He said around 100 fighter jets were supporting the campaign and that the coalition had established “air protection” over the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
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coalition → say → Strait
The coalition also claimed to have destroyed hundreds of Houthi targets.
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coalition → claim → targets
Those claims could not be independently verified.
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claims → verify → ?
Smoke rises from the site of an airstrike in Sanaa, Yemen October 4, 2026.
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Smoke → rise → Sanaa
Picture taken with a mobile phone.
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Picture → take → phone
Why has 'Yemen Dawn' been launched
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Dawn → launch → ?
The operation follows a rapid Houthi advance in southwestern Yemen and along the Red Sea coastline.
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operation → follow → coastline
The rebels captured the key town of Turbah on Sunday, shortly before the government announced its military offensive.
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government → capture → offensive
Turbah is strategically important because it lies on the main road connecting Taiz, one of Yemen's most important cities, with Aden, the southern port city that serves as the interim seat of the internationally recognised government.
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that → lie → government
The Houthis had already captured several villages and areas around Taiz.
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Houthis → capture → Taiz
Their latest gains have raised the possibility of the rebels tightening their grip around the city and cutting off routes used by government forces to move troops and supplies.
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rebels → raise → troops
Houthi supporters shout slogans as they celebrate advances made by Houthi forces in fighting with government forces along Yemen's Red Sea coast at Sanaa in Yemen.
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they → shout → Yemen
The Institute for the Study of War said the capture of Turbah could seriously restrict the ability of government-aligned forces to reinforce positions around Taiz.
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capture → say → Taiz
“Disrupting resupply has military value, of course, but controlling all the roads in and out of areas to the north of Turbah also prevents government forces from retreating out of the city,” the Washington-based think tank said.
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tank → disrupt → city
Houthis push towards Bab el-Mandeb
The Houthi advance has also brought the strategically vital Bab el-Mandeb Strait into sharper focus.
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advance → bring → focus
The rebels made major gains along Yemen's western Red Sea coast in September, capturing the strategic city of Mokha and several Red Sea islands.
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rebels → make → Mokha
These advances gave them control of Yemen's side of the Bab el-Mandeb, a narrow maritime passage linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.
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advances → give → Aden
Around 12% of global trade passes through the waterway, making control of the area strategically important not only for Yemen but also for regional and international powers.
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control → pass → powers
Around 12% of global trade passes through the waterway,
Saudi-backed forces said on Monday that they had begun attacks on Houthi positions around Dhubab, a coastal town near the strait.
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they → pass → strait
The Giants Brigades, a government-allied faction, also announced a “decisive military operation against the Houthi militias” in the Bab el-Mandeb area.
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Brigades → ally → area
Saudi Arabia's intervention marks a major escalation.
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intervention → mark → escalation
Al-Malki said the coalition would continue supporting Yemeni government forces until the Houthis are “eliminated.”
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Houthis → say → forces
How did Yemen's war reach this point?
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war → reach → point
The latest escalation follows months of renewed fighting between the Houthis, Saudi Arabia and forces aligned with Yemen's internationally recognised government.
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escalation → follow → government
The current flare-up began in mid-July after the Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of bombing Sanaa airport to prevent an unauthorised Iranian flight from landing.
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Houthis → begin → flight
The rebels subsequently launched missile and drone attacks against Saudi Arabia and government forces inside Yemen.
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rebels → launch → Yemen
They also announced a blockade on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea and attacked several Saudi-linked vessels.
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They → announce → vessels
The fighting intensified in September when the Houthis launched their biggest territorial push in years along the Red Sea coast.
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Houthis → intensify → coast
Yemen's wider civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis moved south from their northern stronghold, seized Sanaa and forced the government to flee to Saudi Arabia.
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Houthis → begin → Arabia
A Saudi-led coalition then intervened in the conflict.
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coalition → lead → conflict
The war has killed more than 150,000 people and created one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.
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war → kill → crises
The latest fighting has killed more than 800 people and wounded over 3,600, according to the United Nations.
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fighting → kill → Nations
More than 145,000 people have been displaced inside Yemen, while more than 3,000 have fled across the sea to Djibouti.
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3,000 → displace → Djibouti
The renewed fighting has also severely affected healthcare in Taiz.
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fighting → renew → Taiz
Yemen's health ministry, which is aligned with the internationally recognised government, said medical facilities in coastal, western and southern parts of the province had either closed or were functioning only partially.
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facilities → align → province
The Aporia
