ADEN — On Thursday, Loyalist Yemeni troops and Gulf Arab forces seized control of the Arabian side of the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden from Houthi fighters, a spokesman for the Gulf-backed government said.

Six months of war in Yemen has raised fears for the security of oil supplies through Bab al-Mandab, a main thoroughfare for vessels heading for the United States or Europe from Asia or the Gulf. Its western shore is controlled by Djibouti and Eritrea.

Residents on the Yemeni side of Bab al-Mandab reported air strikes and shelling by warships in support of a ground thrust, but could not immediately confirm that the Iranian-allied Houthis had lost the eastern shore of the strait.

“In a large-scale military operation launched today, Yemeni government, resistance and coalition forces liberated the Bab al-Mandab Strait and Mayun island with the goal of safeguarding this key sea route,” Rajeh Badi said.

Yemeni Prime Minister Khaled Bahah, who returned to Aden in mid-September after months of exile in Saudi Arabia, later said on his Twitter account:

“On this day, with support from the armed militias, we were victorious. Mayun and Bab al-Mandab, before them Marib, and soon, God willing, Taiz and the rest of the cities.”