Yemeni forces retake Red Sea port city Mokha

• Brent crude edges up around $100
• Mecca Alliance agrees ‘rapid deployment’
• Government forces to continue north

Oil prices gained on Tuesday morning after a Saudi-led coalition destroyed launchpads belonging to Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi militia, while forces aligned with the internationally recognised government retook the strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha.

At an emergency meeting in Riyadh on Monday, the Mecca Alliance—which includes Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan—agreed to implement its collective defence commitments “immediately”, the state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

The alliance ensured the “rapid deployment” of agreed military forces and capabilities in Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said it had destroyed a ballistic missile launch platform in Sana’a and a ballistic missile storage facility at a mountainous site in Saada, SPA reported.

The coalition’s naval forces also carried out a military operation in Al-Hudaydah governorate, which borders the Red Sea.

Yemeni government forces have retaken the strategic port city of Mokha from the Houthi militia, according to commander-in-chief Rashad al-Alimi, who was quoted in state media on Monday.

Al-Alimi said government forces would continue north and attempt to retake the city of Khawkhah.

Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed in a post on X on Tuesday morning that the group still “maintains control over all of its gains”, without mentioning Mokha by name.

The recapture of Mokha means the Houthis no longer control territory overlooking the vital Bab al-Mandab shipping chokepoint at its narrowest point, reducing their ability to attack passing ships.

Further reading:

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• Red Sea disruption threatens Saudi petchems’ recovery

The Houthis captured the port city, which lies just 60km across the water from the coast of Africa, in early September.

The group claimed it struck several sites in Saudi Arabia on Monday, including King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, an Aramco refinery in Rabigh and Abha airport, Reuters reported. Saudi Arabia has not confirmed the strikes.

Speaking at a conference in London on Monday, Aramco CEO Amin Nasser warned that global oil stockpiles were “scarily thin” and that rebuilding inventories could take up to two years.

Despite dwindling global stockpiles, state-owned Saudi Aramco offered buyers in Asia its largest discount since the Covid pandemic to offset higher freight rates.

Brent crude futures rose 0.50 percent to $100.80 per barrel by 03:00 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate futures gained 0.38 percent to $89.77.

Gulf stock markets closed mixed on Monday.

Abu Dhabi and Dubai’s main share indices rose 0.4 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively, while Qatar and Oman were up 1.1 percent and 0.7 percent.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index declined 0.3 percent, while Bahrain and Kuwait also closed lower.