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Ulviyya Poladova

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Yemeni leader Rashad al-Alimi has called for general mobilization amid a new Houthi offensive.

He urged citizens to join the army and security forces in an effort to retake control of Sanaa, which the Houthi movement has controlled since 2014.

In recent weeks, the Houthis have intensified their offensive in western Yemen and advanced toward strategic highlands overlooking approaches to the Red Sea coast.

Against this backdrop, al-Alimi also promised an amnesty for those who leave the Houthi ranks and lay down their arms.

For more than a decade, the Houthis have been fighting Yemen's Saudi-backed government. Although a 2022 truce left the conflict largely frozen, fighting has recently flared up again amid the wider conflict involving Iran.

In recent weeks, the Houthis have intensified their missile and drone attacks on neighboring Saudi Arabia. They declared a maritime blockade and attacked Saudi targets in an attempt to stifle Saudi oil exports.

The Houthis have also seized control of Yemen's entire Red Sea coast in a lightning offensive, allowing them to fully control the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait, igniting global fears about shipping through the chokepoint.