Hizam Al-Assad: Yemen Controls Bab el-Mandeb, Ready for Any Escalation

By Al Mayadeen English

10 Oct 2026 23:40

Ansar Allah official Hizam al-Assad says Yemeni forces control Bab el-Mandeb and are prepared for further escalation, warning of additional retaliation if Saudi Arabia continues its aggression and blockade.

Yemeni forces control Bab el-Mandeb and are prepared to confront any further escalation, Ansar Allah political bureau member Hizam al-Assad told Al Mayadeen, warning Saudi Arabia that continued aggression and its blockade on Yemen would bring further retaliation.

Al-Assad said Sanaa had dealt a blow to Riyadh and those promoting claims that Saudi-affiliated forces controlled the strategic waterway. He described “desperate US and Saudi efforts to regain control of Bab el-Mandeb.”

According to al-Assad, the Yemeni Armed Forces had established control through firepower over Bab el-Mandeb and the Red Sea before taking control of the western coast. He added that Yemeni forces were holding their positions and advancing on the Taiz front.

Yemen warns of further responses

Al-Assad said the Yemeni Armed Forces had numerous options available and many surprises in store should Saudi Arabia continue its attacks and blockade.

“The Yemeni people are establishing an equation on the battlefield that the Saudi enemy, and anyone seeking to join it on this dangerous path, will come to understand,” he said.

He described the confrontation as a battle between the Saudi regime and the Yemeni people in all their diversity, stressing Yemen’s readiness to respond to aggression by the United States, “Israel,” or any other party.

Most facilities struck by Saudi aircraft in Yemen were civilian, he said, including airports, bridges and telecommunications networks.

Criticism of Qatar and Syrian authorities

Turning to Qatar, al-Assad accused Doha of stirring internal tensions and backing Riyadh’s hostile position toward Yemen.

“The Qatari regime is trying to offer sacrifices to the US administration by supporting the Saudi regime’s aggression against Yemen,” he said, urging Qatar to refrain from antagonizing the Yemeni people.

Al-Assad also criticized the Syrian authorities, saying territories under Israeli occupation were closer to Syria than Yemen was.

“If the Syrian regime wants to rid itself of the foreign mercenaries it has, it would be more appropriate to send them into an honorable battle: the liberation of Syrian territory,” he said.

Attacks disrupt operations at Riyadh airport

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority confirmed that an attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh injured several people and prompted a temporary suspension of operations.

Kuwait Airways subsequently canceled Saturday’s flights to and from Riyadh, citing the airport’s closure because of the “security situation.” The British and US embassies also advised their citizens to avoid the airport.

The disruption followed three separate operations targeting the airport on Thursday, which the Yemeni Armed Forces said had achieved precise, direct hits and interrupted air traffic.

On Friday, the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation announced that three Saudi citizens had been killed in two attacks on King Khalid International Airport.

The Yemeni Armed Forces have been targeting airports and vital facilities deep inside Saudi territory, alongside Saudi-affiliated military concentrations in Yemen, in response to the ongoing Saudi aggression and blockade.