Yemeni Government Launches Major Counteroffensive Against Houthis With Vow to Retake Sanaa

Forces loyal to Yemen’s internationally recognised government have launched a sweeping military counteroffensive against Houthi rebels, with senior officials explicitly declaring an objective to recapture the capital city of Sanaa. The escalation shatters a fragile, UN-brokered truce that had largely frozen the front lines since 2022. Major-General Samir Al-Sabri, Yemen’s deputy defence minister, stated in a state television broadcast that the decision to retake the capital had been finalized.

The renewed hostilities follow an aggressive Houthi push last week across western Taiz and southern Hodeidah toward the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Government forces have absorbed the initial shock of the rebel offensive and expanded combat operations across multiple fronts, including al-Dhalea, Marib, al-Jawf, and al-Bayda. According to the World Health Organization, nearly 900 people have been killed or wounded since Thursday, and roughly 21,000 residents have been displaced from Taiz alone as intensive battles rage.

The revived conflict has transformed vast swathes of Yemen into active combat zones, with particular emphasis on provinces serving as gateways to major logistical corridors. Ahmed al-Shalafi, Al Jazeera’s Yemen affairs editor, noted that government forces expanded operations to stretch rebel lines. Al-Jawf has emerged as a crucial theater because it borders Saudi Arabia and connects directly to Saada, the core stronghold of the Houthi movement. Simultaneously, al-Bayda's central geography links eight separate governorates, making it vital for territorial control.

Government-aligned media and military spokespersons reported intensive airstrikes and ground skirmishes across these disputed sectors. Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen’s Saudi-backed Presidential Leadership Council, claimed significant territorial gains in al-Jawf, al-Bayda, Taiz, and Hodeidah. Mr. al-Alimi asserted that state armed forces would continue their constitutional duty until government institutions are fully restored across all national territory, directly accusing the rebel leadership of choosing escalation over a political settlement.

The battlefield escalation is closely tied to wider regional conflicts and critical maritime transit routes. The Bab al-Mandeb Strait has gained immense strategic and economic significance for crude oil exports from Saudi Arabia, the world's leading crude exporter, following Iran's restriction of commercial navigation through the Strait of Hormuz at the outset of the United States and Israeli war against Iran. Prior to the latest counteroffensive, the Houthis declared a maritime blockade against Saudi vessels transiting the Bab al-Mandeb corridor.

This maritime pressure compounds diplomatic failures following the breakdown of the 2022 truce. Diplomatic efforts had originally aimed to transition the ceasefire into a lasting political settlement, but those initiatives faltered as regional hostilities widened. Government forces previously struck the Houthi-controlled airport in Sanaa in July to block an incoming Iranian aircraft, accelerating the collapse of the ceasefire and setting the stage for the current multi-front military campaign.

Medical and military tallies indicate a devastating toll on combatants and civilians alike as the fighting intensifies. According to an AFP tally compiled from multiple sources, clashes on Friday alone resulted in 129 fatalities. Subsequent fighting on Saturday across the southwest killed more than 60 individuals, including 26 government troops and 31 rebel fighters, according to military and medical sources from both sides.

Civilians have borne a severe brunt of the renewed violence. In the government-held city of Taiz, a missile strike obliterated a passenger bus traveling toward Aden, killing six civilians and wounding seven others. A government official blamed the strike on the Houthis. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization confirmed that overall casualties have surged past 900 wounded or killed since Thursday, compounding severe humanitarian strains that include acute shortages of medical supplies and children's immunizations.

Houthi leadership has mounted fierce resistance against the government-backed advance, claiming successful counter-operations in key contested provinces. Mohammed al-Farah, a member of the Houthi political bureau, stated on social media that rebel forces successfully repelled a large-scale government push toward the al-Labanat mountains in al-Jawf. He asserted that dozens of opposing fighters were casualties and claimed that Houthi ballistic missile strikes destroyed multiple military vehicles and targeted enemy commanders.

Independent verification of battlefield claims by either side remains difficult given the intensity of the active combat environment. Government spokespersons have issued strict tactical warnings, advising civilians to avoid major transit arteries leading into Sanaa, specifically citing routes through Nihm, Sirwah, Mahliyah, and al-Hazm. As military commands prepare for decisive engagements, the trajectory of the campaign points toward extended conflict across Yemen's fractured landscape.