Houthis Report Deadly Saudi Airstrikes as Kingdom Issues Mass Alerts

11:11 AM ETDeveloping

World Desk

In Short: Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Houthis exchanged air strikes, with both sides accusing each other of causing civilian casualties and threatening further attacks.

The Saudi-led coalition reported minor to moderate injuries from Houthi attacks on Khamis Mushait, Abha, and Taif, while the Houthis claimed Saudi air raids killed three civilians in Taiz province. Both sides pledged to respond firmly to the other's actions.

Saudi coalition spokesperson Major-General Turki al-Maliki stated, 'The Joint Forces Command of the Coalition will deal with these attacks responsibly and firmly to protect the sovereignty of the kingdom.' The Houthis, meanwhile, vowed to continue attacks on 'Saudi military concentrations until aggression ceases.

The Houthis' rapid advance on Yemen's Red Sea coast, including the capture of Greater and Lesser Hanish islands, has raised concerns about the potential impact on global trade, with Iran being accused of threatening a significant portion of the world's oil economy.

While the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not comment, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the Mecca pact would be activated in case of an unprovoked attack on Saudi Arabia. Washington, however, showed little interest in engaging directly with the Houthis, with President Trump assuring the US administration they had no wish to fight US forces.

What's still developing

Later on Tuesday, the Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah (supporters of God), said Saudi Arabia launched 54 air raids across the governorates of Lahj, Taiz, al-Jawf, Marib and Hajjah in the past 24 hours.
The group said Saudi air strikes hit the government complex in Khadir district, Taiz governorate, causing injuries.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said F-15 and Typhoon fighter jets operating from Saudi airbases in Khamis Mushait and Taif were used in the strikes and threatened retaliation.
The attacks come after the Iran-aligned group said on Monday that it fired dozens of missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia’s King Khalid airbase in Khamis Mushait, targeting hangars, radar systems, runways and ammunition depots, in retaliation for Saudi air raids across Yemen.
The Houthis said in a statement on Monday that Saudi warplanes had carried out 300 air raids across Yemen over the previous five days The exchanges of air attacks follow the Houthis’ rapid advance on the ground in western Yemen last week, with the group gaining control over much of Yemen’s Red Sea coast and advancing to areas adjacent to the Bab al-Mandeb strait.
The forces of Yemen’s internationally recognised government said on Monday that they made advances in the contested Taiz province after retaking positions from the Houthis, and had struck the group’s fighters and equipment in Dhubab and al-Khokha on the Red Sea coast.
Houthi and Yemeni government officials said on Monday that the Houthis had seized the Greater and Lesser Hanish islands in the southern Red Sea, about 160km (100 miles) north of the Bab al-Mandeb.
Yemen’s more than decade-long war reignited in July, as the Houthis declared a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia and began attacking its ships in the Red Sea, threatening a 2022 United Nations-brokered ceasefire that halted large-scale violence.

Sources

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