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Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia have intensified, prompting regional security concerns and testing the resolve of the so-called Islamic NATO alliance members.
Yemen’s Houthi movement has intensified missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, targeting military bases, oil facilities and commercial shipping routes, as the conflict in Yemen enters its most dangerous phase since the UN-brokered truce collapsed in 2022.
Saudi authorities said Houthi attacks struck military installations and civilian infrastructure in the southwestern cities of Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jizan and Najran, injuring dozens of civilians, including women and children. The attacks also targeted oil facilities and airports near the Saudi-Yemen border.
The latest escalation began after Yemeni government forces reportedly targeted Sanaa International Airport to prevent an aircraft arriving from Iran from landing. Shortly afterward, the Houthis announced what they described as a “maritime embargo” against Saudi Arabia and launched missiles and drones at Saudi targets and vessels in the Red Sea.
Houthis Push Toward Strategic Red Sea Coast
Yemen’s Saudi-backed internationally recognized government said fierce fighting is underway in Taiz, Al-Bayda, Al-Dhale and Al-Hudaydah provinces as Houthi forces attempt to advance toward the strategic port city of Mocha and the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Military reinforcements have been deployed to Mocha to defend the city, which overlooks one of the world’s busiest maritime chokepoints connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
Yemeni officials say Houthi drones have targeted government military positions, while the Houthis claim they have also struck military convoys transporting weapons and ammunition for government forces.
The World Health Organization says renewed fighting between late August and early September killed at least 194 people and injured more than 880 others, adding to the heavy human toll of Yemen’s long-running civil war.
The Houthis have also continued attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea, saying the operations are linked to their regional campaign in support of Iran. The renewed violence has raised fears that Yemen could again become the center of a broader regional conflict, threatening international shipping and energy supplies through the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
The conflict in Yemen began after Houthi forces seized the capital, Sanaa, in 2014. Saudi Arabia led a regional military coalition in 2015 to restore Yemen’s internationally recognized government, while the Houthis have been widely accused of receiving military support from Iran, claims Tehran has consistently denied.
The latest escalation comes as tensions across the Middle East remain elevated following renewed hostilities between the United States and Iran, increasing concerns that regional conflicts could further disrupt global trade and energy markets.
