The battle for Yemen: Houthis, Saudi Arabia and the Red Sea

After a week of intense clashes with Yemeni government forces, Yemen’s Houthis plunged across southern Yemen, seizing key points around the Bab el-Mandeb strait. The success of their operation came as a shock to the Yemeni armed forces, their backers in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, and the wider region, which may now be contending with a double energy shock as another key waterway in the region falls into new hands. So, to ask how this offensive was so successful, and what it could mean for Yemen’s future as well as the wider conflict in the Middle East, we are joined by Mohammed Albasha of Basha Report Risk Advisory and Yemeni analyst and policy advisor Ibrahim Jalal. Watch MEE LIVE, our new biweekly live news programme, where we take a look at the news shaping our world through breaking coverage, expert analysis and hard-hitting interviews. MEE LIVE: Tuesday & Thursday | 12pm EST | 5pm GMT | Join the conversation at MEELive@middleeasteye.org Support stories that matter. Join this channel to get access to perks:    / @middleeasteye   Subscribe to our channel: http://ow.ly/AVlW30n1OWH Subscribe to MEE Telegram channel to stay up to date: https://t.me/MiddleEastEye_TG Middle East Eye Website: https://middleeasteye.net Follow us on TikTok:   / middleeasteye   Follow us on Instagram:   / middleeasteye   Like us on Facebook:   / middleeasteye   Follow us on Twitter:   / middleeasteye