Yemen leadership council orders general mobilization following major Houthi coastal advances

The short version

• Rashad al-Alimi, leader of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council, ordered a nationwide mobilization to counter Houthi forces and recapture lost territory.[Deutsche Welle]
• The decree follows a rebel offensive that captured Yemen's full Red Sea shoreline and secured full control over the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait.[Al Jazeera · Deutsche Welle]
• The government offered an upcoming pardon to Houthi defectors, though analysts evaluate widespread near-term defections from an estimated 350,000 rebel fighters as unlikely.[Al Jazeera · Deutsche Welle]
• The resurgence in conflict follows the breakdown of a 2022 truce, accompanied by escalating Houthi missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabia.[Al Jazeera · Deutsche Welle]

Key facts

• Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council, called for a general mobilization on Friday, September 25, 2026.[Deutsche Welle]
• The declared mobilization aims to restore state institutions and sovereignty across the entire national territory, including the capital Sanaa.[Al Jazeera · Deutsche Welle]
• The Houthis seized Yemen's entire Red Sea coast, taking full control of the vital Bab al-Mandab Strait shipping lane.[Al Jazeera · France 24 · Deutsche Welle]
• The government promised an amnesty to any fighters defecting from the Houthi movement.[Al Jazeera · France 24 · Deutsche Welle]
• The renewal of active fighting follows the collapse of a truce established in 2022.[Al Jazeera · Deutsche Welle]
• Government troops remain engaged in heavy combat in Marib and Taiz, locations distant from the capital.[Al Jazeera]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.

• Yemeni leader calls for general mobilization against HouthisDeutsche Welle
• Yemen's president calls on his people to mobilise against Iran-backed HouthisFrance 24
• Why has the Yemen government called for a general mobilisation?Al Jazeera