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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor

Iran’s Houthi allies capture strategic island on vital oil shipping route

Houthi fighters shout slogans while marching through a street
Houthi fighters on a march to mobilise more fighters against Saudi-backed government troops, in Sana'a on Thursday. Photograph: Yahya Arhab/EPA

Yemen’s rampant Houthi forces have captured the strategic island of Perim in the Bab al-Mandab strait, expanding their control of the narrow waterway, one of the ​world’s vital shipping routes.

The Iran-aligned Houthis took control of the volcanic island after forces allied to the UN-backed, Aden-based government left in the latest of a dramatic series of reverses along Yemen’s west coast in recent days, including the loss of the port city of Mocha on Thursday.

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