A circulating video of “Residents of the city of Al-Turbah in Yemen welcome the entry of Houthi forces.” What is its truth?

A video clip spread on social media, amid allegations that it was linked to the reception of Houthi forces by the people of a city in the vitally important Taiz Governorate in southwest Yemen. The 27-second video has received hundreds of thousands of views on X, and shows packed streets, vehicles and cheering crowds.

Publications on the X website claimed that the scenes showed the Houthi forces receiving a warm welcome from the residents of the city of “Al-Turbah” in southern Taiz. When we used the reverse search, there was an older version dated September 22, when the Houthis took over the strategic city of Mokha overlooking the Red Sea.

By examining the elements of the circulating video, we noticed the appearance of many banners related to the city of Mocha, including a banner reading “Al-Asaad Pharmacy,” which is located at this point on Google Maps. The spread of the video coincided with reports about Houthi fighters taking control of the city of Al-Turbah on Sunday.

The city plays an important role in transporting supplies to forces loyal to the Yemeni government in Taiz Governorate. Earlier on Sunday, the internationally recognized Yemeni government announced the start of a broad military operation, which it described as a "liberation battle", aiming to repel the progress made by the Houthi group since last month along the Red Sea coast.