ALBAWABA - Amid stalled diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran, escalating tensions between them, and fears of war resumption, Iran has deployed a number of its military officers near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait in western Yemen.
Observers believe this move could pave the way for a new phase of simultaneous maritime threats in the region amid the closure of the Strait of Hormuz by the Iranian Navy and the blockade imposed by the U.S. on Iranian ports until a deal has been reached with Tehran.
Yemeni military sources revealed a significant increase in the movements of newly arrived Iranian experts in coastal areas controlled by the Houthi militia.
Yemeni coastguard members loyal to the internationally-recognised government ride in a patrol boat cruising in the Red Sea off of the government-held town of Mokha in the western Taiz province, close to the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait, on December 12, 2023. (Photo by Khaled Ziad / AFP)
This deployment is part of a field plan to redeploy elements linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard along the Red Sea coast.
Sources told Eram News that Iran has deployed more military personnel from the Quds Force – the external arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – to areas of Yemen's western coast over the past two months. These personnel were accompanied by foreign fighters whose nationalities and the nature of their missions remain unknown.
The sources added that these fighters arrived in separate groups at unofficial ports in Hodeidah Governorate aboard smuggling boats originating from the Horn of Africa.
