The Houthis have encircled Taiz, Yemen’s third-largest city, since early October 2026 by seizing key roads south toward Aden, tightening a siege that has displaced nearly 260,000 people and created acute shortages of food, water, fuel, and medical supplies. Government forces, backed by Saudi-led coalition airstrikes under Operation Dawn of Yemen launched October 5, have conducted hundreds of strikes daily, claiming to neutralize hundreds of Houthi fighters, destroy equipment, and repel multi-axis attacks while preparing a counteroffensive to reopen supply routes. Fierce clashes continue on the outskirts, with reported civilian casualties from shelling on both sides. These battlefield dynamics and humanitarian pressures shape trader assessments of whether Houthi forces can consolidate control over the city amid the renewed civil war.