Yakhtul is a large coastal fishing village in the Ta'izz Governorate

Ta'izz Governorate

Ta'izz is a governorate of Yemen. The governorate's capital is Ta'izz, which is the third largest city in Yemen. Other major towns include Al Sawa, Juha and the famous coffee port of Mocha. It has a total population of just over three million and an area of 10,677km².For such a small area, Ta'izz...

 of southwestern Yemen. Yakhtul is located about "two German leagues (10 miles) north of the city of Mocha

Mocha, Yemen

Mocha or Mokha is a port city on the Red Sea coast of Yemen. Until it was eclipsed in the 19th century by Aden and Hodeida, Mocha was the principal port for Yemen's capital Sana'a.-Overview:...

." It contains a number of white houses, the Yakhtul Mosque and a school.

History

During World War I, British patrol vessels shelled Dhubab

Dhubab

Dhubab is a small coastal town in the Ta'izz Governorate of southwestern Yemen. It is the seat of Dhubab District.-History:During World War I, British patrol vessels shelled Dhubab fort in November 1914...

 fort in November 1914 and opened fire on Yakhtul on 8 December 1914, damaging 7 or 8 dhows moored there.

Geography

Yakhtul lies on the coast of the Red Sea

Red Sea

The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...

, at the head of a small shoal inlet, 10 miles north of Mocha. Jirdan lies further to the north of Yakhtul, 'Abus to the southeast and Kudhaysah to the northeast. The 9 mile stretch between Yakhtul and Marsa Farjah has numerous sand and coral patches which give the sea a dark grey colour. The stretch between Yakhtul and Al Zahari contains coastal palm groves.

Economy

MEED

MEED

MEED is a 54-year-old business intelligence tool for the Middle East and North Africa , providing analysis and commentary on Middle Eastern markets, companies, people and data on the regional projects market.-MEED Magazine:...

 describes Yakhtul as being tourist oriented. Fishing is a major source of income for the locals. As of 1996, despite many of the houses have their own wells, high water salinity meant that it could only be used for bathing and cleaning and drinking water had to be imported. However, the local diet is said to meet the World Health Organization

World Health Organization

The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...

 minimum requirements, with a plentiful supply of nutrients from fresh fish and other local commodities. A French medical team was reported to be operating in Yakhtul in the mid 1980s.

Notable landmarks

Yakhtul is described as consisting of "a few white houses, some huts, and a mosque." The town contains Yakhtul Mosque, which was said to have been "built at the expense of the good people of the area at a cost of one million riyals." The same man who built the mosque also established Yakhtul preparatory school in the town, at a cost of l50,000 riyals. The "first phases of construction work" were reported to have been completed in 1989.

At the village is what is called "Dar al-milh" (the place of salt). The salt pan

Salt pan

Salt pans can refer to:*Salt pan , a flat expanse of ground covered with salt and other minerals, usually found in deserts*Salt evaporation pond, a method of producing salt by evaporating brine...

s, called darah are said to be "cut out of the hard ground and the soil heaped up on the sides to form bunds (zabir al-darah).