Yemen’s internationally recognized government reported new positions east of al-Hazm, where high ground may help track Houthi supply traffic, as competing accounts leave the extent of any advance in dispute.
On Oct. 31, the Yemen Armed Forces Media Center said the First Emergency Brigade controlled strategic sites and extensive areas east of the city. Its post gave neither a map nor a measurement of the area claimed.
Colonel Rabie Al-Qurashi told Al Jazeera and Anadolu that government forces had taken the Huwaishan range. Al Jazeera also reported Houthi claims that advances in Al-Jawf and neighboring Marib had been thwarted. Those competing accounts do not confirm the extent of any shift in territorial control.
The latest report follows EconoTimes’ earlier coverage of government claims of gains near the Huwaishan range. Military researcher Ali Al-Dahab told Al Jazeera that troops on elevated ground could watch Houthi resupply activity and better defend their own lines.
Al Jazeera’s geographic account places Al-Jawf along Saudi Arabia and links it to several other Yemeni governorates. The outlet says the government-held Khabb wa ash Sha’af spans 82% of Al-Jawf, while Houthi forces control 11 districts, including al-Hazm. The Houthis took the city in March 2020 after several earlier changes in control, Al Jazeera reported.
President Rashad Al-Alimi announced Operation Dawn of Yemen on Oct. 5. The official presidential website says its aims include restoring state institutions and retaking Sana’a. On Nov. 1, Decree No. 73 of 2026 appointed Major General Ameen Ali Al-Akimi governor of Al-Jawf and commander of its military axis. Al-Alimi urged Al-Akimi to coordinate with military and security leaders and protect civilians, the presidential website said.
UNFPA reported on Oct. 29 that fighting on the western coast and southern Ta’iz fronts had displaced nearly 250,000 people since August, mostly in Ta’iz Governorate. The figure does not measure displacement from the Al-Jawf front.
