Fighting Escalates South of Yemen’s Vital Hodeidah Port

With fighting across Yemen looking to be scaling up once again, violence is again raging around the vital aid port of Hodeidah. On Thursday, Houthis and pro-Saudi forces engaged in a fight in the town of Durayhimi, south of Hodeidah, leaving at least 18 fighters killed.

Both sides are trying to present the fight as going well for them. The pro-Saudi forces bragged of shooting down a drone, while the Houthis said they’d halted a “major” assault on the town, and remained in control of Durayhimi.

Hodeidah is the source of 70% of all Yemeni commercial and humanitarian imports, and is the only operating port still providing aid to Houthi-controlled north Yemen. The Saudis have been contesting the area for months.

The UN has been trying to broker a deal that would stop fighting in the area around the port. The concern is that if the fighting continues the port would be damaged, and the lack of aid would lead to humanitarian crisis.