Following the successful capture of Bab el-Mandeb, Ansarallah began digging trenches to consolidate their gains, establishing the front line to the east of Sheikh Said and along the border between the governorates of Taiz and Lahij. As noted previously, there is no intention to advance along the coast towards Aden; rather, the second phase of Operation ‘And Allah is More Severe in Power and More Severe in Punishment’ aims to capture the mountains north of Lahij, in coordination with advances in Taiz, in order to encircle and besiege the capital of the latter governorate, Yemen’s third most populous city.