China Urges Restraint in Yemen as Red Sea Tensions Flare at UN Security Council

China called on all warring parties in Yemen to cease hostilities and return to diplomatic negotiations, warning that the situation is on the verge of full escalation, at an emergency session of the UN Security Council on Tuesday.

The session focused on the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a critical shipping route where fighting has intensified in recent weeks. Sun Lei, charge d'affaires at China's Permanent Mission to the United Nations, said Beijing is deeply concerned by the escalating armed conflicts in Yemen and the Red Sea.

"The Yemen situation is on the verge of a full escalation. No matter how big the differences are, relevant sides should seek a way out with negotiations rather than gunfire," Sun told the council. "The top priority now is for all parties to exercise calm and restraint, and immediately stop the conflict."

Sun reiterated China's longstanding support for the sovereignty, security and territorial integrity of both Yemen and Saudi Arabia, and opposed attacks on civilian infrastructure, including energy facilities. He stressed that the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait are vital international channels for goods and energy, and that maintaining normal shipping order is a shared international responsibility. China opposes any attack on civilian vessels, he added, and the navigation rights of all countries' merchant ships under international law should be respected.

The Chinese envoy also backed efforts by Gulf countries to mediate, saying China is ready to work with all parties to keep international shipping lanes safe, end the conflicts in the Middle East and restore regional security and stability.

The diplomatic push comes as cross-border hostilities continue to escalate. Yemen's Houthi group said Saudi warplanes carried out 52 airstrikes across five provinces over the past 24 hours. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said the strikes "will not go unanswered," suggesting further retaliation against Saudi Arabia.

The escalation follows a Houthi offensive launched on Sept. 3 that has shifted front lines along Yemen's Red Sea coast. The group captured the strategic port city of Mocha on Sept. 10, then advanced into the Bab al-Mandab area and seized Mayun Island at the heart of the strait on Sept. 11.

The renewed fighting has displaced at least 125,000 civilians since the start of September, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The UN Human Rights Office has verified 40 civilian casualties — eight dead and 32 injured — in the first two weeks of this month, with women and children accounting for half of those killed and more than half of those injured.

Yemen's conflict erupted in late 2014 when the Houthis seized Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in March 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government.