The battle for Taiz is entering a more dangerous phase. Sources close to Sanaa say that Ansar Allah forces have taken control of more than 640 km² of mountainous highlands and rugged terrain in less than 24 hours. I have not yet found independent confirmation of that figure, but verified developments do point to a significant advance across strategic high ground around Taiz in recent hours. Reuters confirmed that Ansar Allah made gains on strategic hills and advanced toward the last major land route linking Taiz with Aden.
Militarily, what matters is not only the number of square kilometers, but the type of terrain being captured. In Taiz, control of mountains and elevated positions provides a major advantage in surveillance and control over movement corridors, while also making any attempt to retake the terrain much more difficult — even with Saudi air superiority.
The most serious development came from the Al-Safiyah area, where several security and military sources confirmed that Ansar Allah seized the area and cut the vital Taiz–Aden road, bringing traffic along it to a halt. This has placed forces inside Taiz under greater logistical pressure, while reports have described the city as being close to encirclement despite remaining under the control of forces aligned with the internationally recognized government.
Riyadh and its allies have clearly understood the seriousness of the situation. Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad al-Alimi announced the launch of a broad military operation to retake all areas captured by Ansar Allah. Saudi Arabia is providing a major share of the air support, while allied Yemeni forces are moving on the ground with U.S. intelligence assistance and regional military backing.
But this announcement came after a series of major setbacks. In recent weeks, Ansar Allah had already seized areas along the Red Sea coast and around Bab al-Mandeb, before shifting pressure eastward and southward toward Taiz and the lines of communication leading to Aden.
From a military perspective, the battle for Taiz has become a battle for roads and high ground — not simply a battle for the city itself.
If Ansar Allah can consolidate its new positions and maintain pressure on the Taiz–Aden road, it will have imposed a serious dilemma on its adversaries: either launch a costly counteroffensive through difficult terrain, or accept a new battlefield reality that gives Sanaa greater strategic weight in southwestern Yemen.
This helps explain the sharp escalation in Saudi airstrikes. In response, Ansar Allah announced that it had launched ballistic missiles and drones against Aramco facilities in Riyadh and Khurais, saying the attacks came in retaliation for roughly 50 air and missile strikes over a 12-hour period. Saudi Arabia has not yet independently confirmed the extent of the claimed damage.
Bottom line: what is happening in Taiz is not just a temporary local advance. If the current gains are consolidated, Ansar Allah is attempting to turn its victories around Bab al-Mandeb and the coast into a new land-based reality that threatens the supply network between Taiz and Aden and forces Saudi Arabia and its allies into a far more difficult war of attrition than they had planned for.
The coming hours will answer the most important question: Can Riyadh reverse the momentum with its counteroffensive, or will Taiz become Ansar Allah’s next major battlefield victory?