Fighting intensifies around Yemen’s Taiz as families flee

The Houthis’ capture of Mokha, a Red Sea port 85km west of Taiz, on 10 September has been followed by heavier fighting around the city. Government forces hold central Taiz, while Houthi positions lie to the north and east. The fiercest recent clashes have been on the western approaches, where both sides are contesting high ground overlooking the route south. [1]

Travelling towards the front line with government forces, BBC correspondent Nawal Al-Maghafi heard repeated strikes, though it was unclear where they landed. Her team counted at least five ambulances heading towards Taiz’s main hospital within half an hour. [1]

At al-Thawra hospital, 12-year-old Ghana Nabeel lay unconscious after shrapnel struck her head while she was herding goats. Her family said a Houthi mortar had landed nearby. Every intensive-care bed the BBC team saw was occupied. [1]

More than 130,000 people across Yemen had fled their homes since the start of September, the UN refugee agency said on 22 September. Taiz accounted for more than 60% of that new displacement. Before the escalation, more than 5.2 million people were already internally displaced in Yemen. [2]

At al-Monig camp, about 20km south of Taiz, families were arriving from Mokha and villages affected by fighting. The BBC was told 200 families had arrived in the preceding 10 days. [1]

The battle for high ground remains unsettled elsewhere along the front. Government-aligned forces claimed to have taken Houthi positions at Jabal Naman on 25 September; the Houthis said the next day that they had repelled the advance. Control of the position remains disputed. [4]