World
Houthis claim major advance in Yemen and tighten grip on Red Sea shipping lane
The Iran-backed Houthis are also reported to have seized Perim - a strategic island on the major shipping route.
BBC World•
The Houthis escalated fighting last week and have now reportedly taken over a strategic island in the Red Sea
Yemen's Houthis have claimed a major advance on the western Red Sea coast, consolidating their grip on the key international shipping route.
The Iran-backed group seized Perim Island at the mouth of the waterway in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a source from Yemen's internationally-recognised government told the BBC.
Sarea also said the Houthis had expelled "Saudi enemy" forces from six districts in the Taiz and Hodeidah regions, claiming that hundreds of troops had been killed, wounded or captured.