Ansarullah’s Advances Reshape Regional Strategy, Impacting Global Oil Flows

According to the International Desk of Webangah News Agency, recent advances by Yemen’s Ansarullah forces along the country’s western coast have delivered significant and startling surprises to all parties and observers of current strategic developments in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf, with far-reaching and direct impacts on the entire world.

The strategic dimensions of Ansarullah’s recent victories in Yemen have been examined by the news and analysis website Al-Ahed, which identified several key factors contributing to these battlefield successes.

First, in approximately three days, Ansarullah forces gained control of over 300 square kilometers of territory, extending from the southern areas of Hudaydah to the coastal city of Mokha. This advance included a land strip connecting the Wa’iziyah and Taiz road areas to the Hise region. Crucially, this territory encompasses Khalid Camp, formerly the largest assembly point for Yemeni units affiliated with Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Second, the Yemeni armed forces and Ansarullah achieved this significant territorial gain with a force estimated to be no more than 5,000 fighters. They confronted five divisions and dozens of brigades belonging to “Dir’ al-Watan” and “Al-Amalqa Brigades,” comprising approximately 50,000 fighters, who were supported by the extensive intelligence apparatus and air power of Saudi Arabia.

The report attributes the collapse of the Yemeni mercenary government, supported by Saudi and Emirati occupiers, to multiple factors. These include deep-seated and chronic rifts among the disparate factions within the coalition, as well as the considerable and significant military capabilities of the Yemeni armed forces.

The strategic success of Ansarullah in executing an intelligent tactical maneuver during this operation is clearly evident. By initiating diversionary engagements in Marib, Jawf, and along the northern borders with Saudi Arabia, they successfully diverted the attention of Saudi-backed forces. Simultaneously, they swiftly transferred the main combat operations to the western coast and executed pre-planned offensive operations in a coordinated manner. This action led to confusion among the “Dir’ al-Watan” and “Al-Amalqa” militias, who found themselves on the verge of encirclement and were ultimately forced to retreat towards the coastal “Dabab” camp, situated between Mokha and Bab al-Mandab.

The article posits that the impacts of these significant victories can be analyzed on both internal and regional levels.

Firstly, the impact on Yemen’s internal situation: This battlefield development, marked by the Yemeni armed forces’ control over strategic geography, will undoubtedly influence the map of control and influence within Yemen. The territory recaptured by Ansarullah grants them control over the western coast towards the Bab al-Mandab Strait, while also enabling broader control over Taiz from the south and southwest. This consolidation will solidify and strengthen the position of the armed forces within Yemen and in the southern and western regions of the country.

Secondly, the impact on the strategic confrontation in the region: These recent victories represent a severe blow to the American-Zionist strategy against Iran and the Axis of Resistance in the region. With these advances, coupled with Iran’s influence and control over the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran’s Yemeni allies will also have complete control over the Bab al-Mandab Strait. This development could have a tremendous strategic impact on Iran’s maneuvering capabilities in the face of a potential American-Zionist war against it.

Therefore, considering the undeniable impact of Ansarullah’s advances on the western coast of Yemen and the inability of the United States to decisively conclude the war against Iran, it can be stated that the power cards of Iran and its allies have doubled, creating conditions conducive to ending this conflict in a manner aligned with the interests of Iran and its allies.

Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar reports that in the shadow of Ansarullah’s new victories in Yemen, while the Strait of Hormuz, the eastern gateway for Saudi Arabian oil exports, remains closed to the country, its western gateway, Bab al-Mandab, which has been under the control of Yemeni armed forces for some time, has come under even tighter control by these forces, paving the way for Saudi oil exports to reach zero.

According to data from the Kepler Institute, the average weekly transit of Saudi crude oil through this strait had exceeded 3.5 million barrels per day in early July, due to increased “Yanbu” exports. However, from mid-July, this flow drastically decreased, reaching near zero in August.

This reduction in production and exports is not solely due to the blockade of “Bab al-Mandab.” It is linked to a series of simultaneous strikes and bottlenecks targeting oil facilities and their transit and export routes. These include the targeting of ships passing through Bab al-Mandab by “Ansarullah,” an attack on the Jazan refinery, navigation operations near Yanbu, and the targeting of oil processing facilities in Abqaiq with drones.