More than 120 people have been killed in Yemen after Houthi forces launched a major offensive to seize control of the Bab al-Mandab strait, the gateway to the Red Sea, according to sources on Friday. The fighting erupted Thursday, when the Iran-backed Houthis launched a ground assault along with rocket and drone attacks near coastal areas. The narrow strait at the Red Sea's southern entrance is a strategic maritime chokepoint.

The clashes are among the deadliest Yemen has seen in years, amid a civil conflict that has lasted more than a decade. In July, Yemen became the latest country to be drawn into the wider West Asia war after the Houthis upended a 2022 truce with the Saudi-backed government. Since then, the Houthis have imposed a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia and repeatedly attacked Saudi ships in the Red Sea, which serves as a vital alternative route.