Iran and its allies ramped up pressure on the US and allied Gulf states on two fronts on Sunday, with Saudi-backed forces retreating in their battle against the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen and Iran itself firing drones at US bases in Bahrain.
In Yemen, Saudi Arabia’s campaign against the Houthis suffered a major setback, as its allies, fighting on behalf of the internationally recognised Yemeni government, pulled back from the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to defend their temporary capital Aden on the southern coast.
The announcement signalled the apparent end of a six-week government counteroffensive to drive the Houthis from the mouth of the Red Sea to secure a key oil route.
Meanwhile, Iranian attacks on Bahrain, headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in the Gulf, were likely to put new pressure on US President Donald Trump to resolve the war he launched nearly nine months ago.
Since the unpopular war contributed to a defeat for his Republicans in midterm elections this month, Trump has played down the need for a diplomatic breakthrough.
Major warfare between the US and Iran has calmed since the early phase of the conflict, but with diplomacy stalled there is little immediate prospect of a resolution either to the wider conflict or the war in Yemen.
Sunday’s announcement of a Yemeni government retreat raises the prospect of new Houthi advances towards Aden on the southern coast, base of the internationally recognised government since the Houthis drove it from the capital Sanaa more than a decade ago.
“The Southern Armed Forces announce the implementation of a redeployment operation for its forces from Dhubab Airport and the Bab el-Mandeb area, west of Taiz Governorate,” the main military force fighting for Yemen’s government in the south of the country said in a statement.
“This step is taken based on the priority of securing the capital, Aden, and the neighbouring governorates, as well as strengthening the front lines and addressing existing threats.”
There was no immediate response from the Houthis, or from Saudi Arabia.
The retreat signals a setback for efforts to reverse rapid gains the Houthis made in September to capture the coast along the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait that controls access to it.
