Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council has announced the start of military operations to retake the remaining areas of the country under Houthi control and restore state authority and institutions across the country, marking a shift from general mobilization and preparations to active military operations.

In an address to the Yemeni people, the PLC chairman said the decision was taken on the basis of resolutions by the National Defense Council and after completing the necessary preparations and measures. He said directives had been issued to the armed forces, security services and all military formations to begin carrying out their assigned missions under approved operational plans.

The chairman said the government had resorted to military action after what he described as the exhaustion of opportunities for de-escalation, while accusing the Houthis of continuing military mobilization, escalation and threats against civilians, neighboring countries and international shipping routes.

He stressed that the operations were not directed against residents of Sana’a, Saada, Hodeidah, Amran, Dhamar, Ibb or any other governorate, nor against any sect or tribe. Rather, he said, the campaign was intended to restore state institutions and bring weapons under state authority.

The address urged civilians in Houthi-controlled areas to stay away from military sites, troop concentrations and supply routes. It also reiterated that the government’s offer of “safe return and amnesty” would remain open to those who lay down their weapons and cease fighting alongside the Houthis.

Government forces were instructed to protect civilians and private property and prevent acts of revenge or retaliation as they advance. The chairman said their mission was not merely to retake territory, but to restore state institutions and the rule of law in areas brought back under government control.

On the civilian front, the government was instructed to prepare a program to operate in parallel with the military campaign, allowing state institutions to resume their responsibilities in each city, district and governorate retaken by government forces.

The plan would prioritize the payment of public-sector salaries, including addressing outstanding arrears, alongside an emergency recovery and reconstruction program covering roads, electricity, water and damaged infrastructure, while facilitating the return of displaced people and the resumption of economic activity.

The PLC chairman also renewed his commitment to the outcome of the Saudi-sponsored Southern-Southern Dialogue and to reaching what he described as a just and comprehensive settlement of the southern issue.

He thanked Saudi Arabia for its support for Yemen’s internationally recognized government and called on regional states and the international community to support Yemen’s armed forces and state institutions, as well as humanitarian, economic, recovery and reconstruction efforts.

The address concluded by declaring that Yemen’s military, security and civilian state institutions would enter a state of “full mobilization” from the start of the operations until the mission is completed.

The strongest news angle remains the formal announcement that military operations have begun, rather than another mobilization statement: the speech explicitly says the government has moved “from the stage of preparation to the stage of action.”