Skip to the story
All StoriesPoliticsConflict & SecurityBusiness & EconomyScience & TechHealthClimateMedia
All stories
Conflict & Security186 outlets ran this3 min read

Yemen's Houthi Rebels Seize Red Sea Islands

The capture of Greater and Lesser Hanish islands tightens rebel control over a key shipping route.

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published Updated
Yemeni civilians celebrate while riding in the back of a pickup truck in the Bani Matar district, Yemen, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026, as they follow a convoy carrying Houthi prisoners freed in Mokha on its way to Sanaa following the Houthi takeover of the southern Red Sea port city. (AP Photo/STR)

What this story says

  • Yemen's Houthi rebels have captured the islands of Greater and Lesser Hanish in the southern Red Sea.
  • The rebels have deployed fighters on the Hanish islands, located 160 kilometers north of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
  • Hundreds of government-allied forces withdrew from the archipelago before the Houthi capture.
  • The Houthi advances have brought them within 20 miles of the U.S. military base in Djibouti and risk pushing Yemen back into full-scale civil war.

Who covered it

Left 21%(25)Centre 59%(70)Right 20%(23)

Percentages are shares of the 118 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 68 of the 186 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .

Trust

60/100

Craft

65/100

Hype

45/100

186 sources · methodology

Missing from the right

Only 23 of the 118 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.

A reader who follows the right would not have seen this. We report the absence rather than explain it: outlets choose what to cover for many reasons, and we have no evidence about which one applies here.

Yemen's Houthi rebels have captured the strategic islands of Greater and Lesser Hanish in the southern Red Sea, according to Yemeni government and Houthi officials. The rebels have deployed fighters on these islands, which are situated 160 kilometers north of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Hundreds of government-allied forces withdrew from the archipelago prior to the Houthi takeover.

These advances by the Houthi rebels have placed them approximately 20 miles from the U.S. military base in Djibouti. The fighting is also seen as pushing Yemen back into a full-fledged civil war, following a three-year period of relative quiet.

Disagreement on timing of previous captures

CTV News and The Hindu report that the capture of the Hanish islands followed the rebels' seizure of the port city of Mokha and the island of Mayun last week. Other reports do not specify a sequence for these events.

What the coverage left out

None of the left, centre, or right-rated reports mention the specific number of government-allied forces that withdrew from the archipelago before the Houthi capture, beyond stating 'hundreds' or 'hundreds of government-allied forces'.

Tags:#Yemen#HouthiRebels#RedSea#MaritimeSecurity#MiddleEastConflict

Coverage settled. We checked this 16 times and stopped on 20 Sept 2026, 03:00. The figures above are what it finished at.

How other outlets pictured it

Which photograph to run is each newsroom’s own choice. The leaning beside a name is that outlet’s published rating, not a claim that the pictures divide along it. Every picture is shown from the outlet’s own server and links to the article it ran in.

Yemen's Houthi Rebels Seize Red Sea Islands
The HinduLeft

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

25 rated outlets

  • The Hindu reported that Houthi rebels deployed fighters on Greater and Lesser Hanish islands, 160 kilometers north of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. This followed the rebels' capture of the port city of Mokha and Mayun island. The Hindu quoted government and Houthi officials, and cited two government officials and one Houthi official.
  • Other left-rated outlets reported the Houthi rebels captured more strategic islands in the southern Red Sea, strengthening their control of a major maritime shipping route. Several digests mentioned the rebels deployed fighters on Greater and Lesser Hanish islands. Some reports noted the capture occurred after government-allied forces withdrew.
  • Spiegel and Dnevni list Danas mentioned the potential impact on global oil supply. Spiegel also reported that tens of thousands of people have been displaced by the fighting, with nearly 90,000 men, women, and children displaced. The New Indian Express noted the gains enable threats to Saudi crude oil shipments.

Centre

70 rated outlets

  • Centre-rated reports focused on the Houthi rebels' seizure of strategic islands in the Red Sea and their tightening grip on shipping routes. CTV News reported that the capture of Greater and Lesser Hanish islands came after the rebels seized the port city of Mokha and the island of Mayun last week. CTV News also stated that the Houthi advances put them just 32 kilometers from the U.S. military base in Djibouti. WV News and GazetteXtra reported that the rebels deployed fighters on the islands of Greater Hanish and Lesser Hanish, 160 kilometers north of the Bab el-Mandeb. WKMG and KPRC-TV reported that Yemeni officials said the Houthi rebels captured more strategic islands in the southern Red Sea, strengthening their control of a major maritime shipping route. The Globe & Mail reported that Iran-backed forces strengthened control of a major maritime shipping route. Winnipeg Free Press and WBAL reported that Yemeni officials said Houthi rebels seized more key islands in the southern Red Sea, increasing their grip on shipping routes.

Right

23 rated outlets

  • Right-rated reports highlighted the Houthi rebels' capture of strategic islands in the southern Red Sea. wbap.com reported that Yemeni officials said the Houthi rebels captured more strategic islands in the southern Red Sea, strengthening their control of a major maritime shipping route. India Today reported that Houthis seized a key Yemen island, putting the U.S.'s biggest Africa base within drone and missile strike range. Interfax.ru reported that Ansar Allah (Houthi) took over the Hanish Archipelago in the South Red Sea, with rebels deploying forces in the Hanish Islands 160 kilometers from the Bab el-Mandeb. Svenska Dagbladet reported that the Houthi movement is widening its offensive and claims control of several strategically located islands in the southern Red Sea. Regional Media News reported that the Houthi rebels bolstered their ability to control a key maritime shipping route.

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover Yemen's Houthi Rebels Seize Red Sea Islands?
Of the 118 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 21% are rated left, 59% are rated centre, 20% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 186. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is Yemen's Houthi Rebels Seize Red Sea Islands left or right?
Neither side dominates it. Of the 118 rated outlets on this story, 21% are rated left, 59% are rated centre, 20% are rated right, and no side holds the 70% this site would want before calling a field one-sided. A story is not left or right in any case; the outlets that carried it are what carry ratings.
Is the coverage of Yemen's Houthi Rebels Seize Red Sea Islands biased?
Yemen's Houthi Rebels Seize Red Sea Islands is one event reported by 186 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which side is not reporting Yemen's Houthi Rebels Seize Red Sea Islands?
When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
Which outlets covered Yemen's Houthi Rebels Seize Red Sea Islands?
186 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
Which islands did the Houthi rebels capture?
Yemen's Houthi rebels captured the islands of Greater and Lesser Hanish in the southern Red Sea. These islands are located 160 kilometers north of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
What is the significance of these islands?
The capture of the Hanish islands strengthens the Houthi rebels' control over a major maritime shipping route. This advance also brings them within approximately 20 miles of the U.S. military base in Djibouti.
What happened to the government forces?
Hundreds of government-allied forces withdrew from the Hanish archipelago before the Houthi rebels took control. This withdrawal occurred as the rebels made swift advances around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
What are the broader implications of this conflict?
The ongoing fighting is pushing Yemen back towards a full-fledged civil war after a three-year truce. The Houthi advances also pose a threat to Saudi crude oil shipments and could give Iran leverage in its conflict with the United States.

Read it at the source

251 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

54
Show 46 more

Centre

83
Show 75 more

Right

30
Show 22 more

Not rated

84
Show 76 more

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

More in Conflict & Security

All Conflict & Security →
Iran hosts Saudi, Turkish, Pakistani officials for regional security talks3 min readIran hosts Saudi, Turkish, Pakistani officials for regional security talksRead storySaudi Arabia offers Houthis $1 billion for ceasefire: Israeli media3 min readSaudi Arabia offers Houthis $1 billion for ceasefire: Israeli mediaRead storyCommuters ride a scooter past a large billborad depicting slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (C) in Tehran on October 26, 2026.4 min readIran Foreign Minister Araghchi discusses seven-day plan to end warRead story

Elsewhere on the site

Hardeep Singh PuriPolitics•3 min readHardeep Singh Puri says India faces no US pressure on Russian oilBirds fly over pump jacks at the Airankol oil field operated by Caspiy Neft in the Atyrau region, Kazakhstan, April 20, 2026. REUTERS/Pavel MikheyevBusiness & Economy•2 min readWorld Bank Predicts 23% Commodity Price Rise by 2026New York Governor Kathy Hochul visits the Western Wall in Jerusalem on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2023. Hochul’s father died overnight while she was touring wartime Israel, with the teary-eyed governor slipping a note grieving the loss into Jerusalem’s Western Wall holy site. (Shlomi Amsalem/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul)Politics•3 min readKathy Hochul links Netanyahu's policies to NY antisemitism
Houthi Rebels Capture Hanish Islands | MediaBias News