New intelligence points to preparations involving unmanned boats and naval mines in Hodeidah, reinforcing earlier Sheba Intelligence reporting on planned missile strikes against Mokha and Al-Khokha

     The Houthis are preparing for possible maritime operations in the Red Sea that could coincide with missile launches against Yemen’s western coast, according to information obtained by Sheba Intelligence.

The preparations follow the group’s retreat from positions captured during its latest offensive in western Taiz, where an expanding government air campaign has disrupted Houthi reinforcements, camps and launch infrastructure.

Intelligence sources told Sheba Intelligence that officers affiliated with the Houthi-controlled naval and coastguard forces are overseeing the preparation of unmanned surface vessels and anti-ship mines at a civilian facility in the vicinity of Hodeidah city.

Other officers are reportedly working on an intelligence plan connected to operations against vessels and maritime traffic in the Red Sea. The activity has reached an advanced stage, according to the sources, although Sheba Intelligence could not independently verify whether the weapons are operational or establish the timing and intended targets.

Two Explosive Boats Reportedly Destroyed

The information follows an announcement by government-aligned naval and coastguard forces that they had destroyed two Houthi explosive-laden boats attempting to target the Al-Fajrah area south of Al-Khokha and the port of Mokha.

The announcement provides a public indication of increased Houthi maritime activity alongside the ground fighting. However, the circumstances of the interception and the identity of the two boats have not been independently verified. It is also unclear whether they were directly connected to the preparations described by the intelligence sources.

Missile Preparations Alongside Maritime Activity

The new information reinforces a Sheba Intelligence report published on September 6, which revealed Houthi preparations to launch ballistic missiles from sites in Hodeidah Governorate towards Mokha and Al-Khokha.

Those preparations were assessed as an attempt to strike government rear positions, disrupt supply routes and increase pressure on forces operating between Mokha, Al-Khokha and the western Taiz fronts.

The overlap between missile preparations and the assembly of unmanned boats and naval mines raises the possibility of a combined operation involving attacks from both land and sea. Such an operation could complicate surveillance and interception by forcing government and maritime security units to respond to several threats simultaneously.

There is not yet enough evidence to conclude that the missile and maritime activity forms part of a single operation. The proximity in timing, preparation areas and potential targets, however, suggests a possible operational connection.

Air Campaign Forces a Tactical Shift

The preparations come as government aircraft expand operations against Houthi positions across five governorates.

According to Sheba Intelligence’s latest assessment of the air campaign, the strikes have moved beyond limited frontline support and increasingly target military camps, reinforcement columns, weapons stores, command positions and missile or drone launch infrastructure.

The campaign has altered the operational rhythm of the fighting. Houthi forces that had been advancing against government positions are now required to disperse personnel, conceal equipment and anticipate strikes against their camps and rear areas.

This pressure has been particularly visible in Taiz and Al-Jawf. Government forces retook the Al-Sharajah junction and reopened the Taiz–Mokha road, preventing the Houthis from consolidating a temporary breakthrough that had cut Taiz’s principal connection with the western coast.

In Al-Jawf, government aircraft struck the Houthi-held Al-Labnat and Al-Khanjar camps, as well as reinforcements east of Al-Hazm, after Sheba Intelligence reported the movement of launchers, drones and fighters into the province.

A previous Sheba Intelligence assessment found that the Houthis began responding with missile attacks as government forces regained ground in Taiz, Marib and Al-Jawf. The strikes appeared intended to slow the counteroffensive and compensate for battlefield losses by targeting rear positions and civilian or military areas beyond the front lines.

The latest maritime preparations indicate a further extension of that shift. Rather than relying primarily on a ground advance towards Mokha and Bab al-Mandab, the Houthis may seek to restore pressure through missiles, explosive boats and naval mines.

Renewed Threat to Bab al-Mandab

The activity also fits a broader pattern previously documented by Sheba Intelligence. A September 3 investigation revealed plans to establish a parallel maritime front along the African coast in coordination with Al-Shabaab, including vessel surveillance, targeting support and the transfer of missile, drone and explosive capabilities.

The latest preparations remain centred on the Yemeni side of the Red Sea. But they show that the Houthis retain options to threaten Mokha, Al-Khokha and shipping near Bab al-Mandab even when their ground campaign loses momentum.

The immediate risk is therefore not limited to another missile strike or an isolated explosive boat. It is the possibility that the Houthis will combine several weapons to compensate for their setback on land and reassert pressure on the western coast and the maritime corridor beyond it.