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Yemen's Government and Saudi Coalition Launch Major Offensive Against Houthis

4:22 AM ETConfirmed

World Desk

In Short: The offensive marks a significant escalation in the conflict, which has seen the Houthis seize vital parts of Yemen’s Red Sea coast and make important gains inland, nearly besieging the strategic city of Taiz.

In a televised address on Sunday evening, Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council, announced a military operation to 'extend the authority of the state and its institutions over the entire national territory.'

The operation, known as 'Operation Yemen Dawn,' has seen more than 1,100 attacks against Houthi positions, according to Yemen’s military spokesman Majed al-Nuzaily.

Gen. Turki al-Maliki, a military spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition, said in a post on X that 100 warplanes participated in a raid that destroyed 324 'high-value targets.'

The offensive marks a significant escalation in the conflict, which has seen the Houthis seize vital parts of Yemen’s Red Sea coast and make important gains inland, nearly besieging the strategic city of Taiz.

The fighting represents the sharpest escalation since a 2022 ceasefire between the Houthis, Yemen’s government, and Saudi Arabia broke down in July.

The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, have long sought greater control over Yemen’s territory and have recently fired dozens of missiles and drones at Saudi targets, including a claimed strike on a 'sensitive target' in Riyadh.

In response to the escalating conflict, Saudi Arabia has called for an urgent meeting with military chiefs from Turkiye and Pakistan to discuss mutual defense agreements.

Grand Mufti Sheikh Saleh Al-Fawzan called on forces to 'stand united against this misguided sect and deviant group,' referring to the Houthis.

The Saudi-led coalition's offensive aims to reclaim territory and assert control over Yemen, while the Houthis continue to assert their dominance through military actions and threats.

What this adds

Background

What's confirmed

• The operation, known as 'Operation Yemen Dawn,' has seen more than 1,100 attacks against Houthi positions, according to Yemen’s military spokesman Majed al-Nuzaily.
• The offensive marks a significant escalation in the conflict, which has seen the Houthis seize vital parts of Yemen’s Red Sea coast and make important gains inland, nearly besieging the strategic city of Taiz.
• The fighting represents the sharpest escalation since a 2022 ceasefire between the Houthis, Yemen’s government, and Saudi Arabia broke down in July.
• The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, have long sought greater control over Yemen’s territory and have recently fired dozens of missiles and drones at Saudi targets, including a claimed strike on a 'sensitive target' in Riyadh.
• In response to the escalating conflict, Saudi Arabia has called for an urgent meeting with military chiefs from Turkiye and Pakistan to discuss mutual defense agreements.
• Grand Mufti Sheikh Saleh Al-Fawzan called on forces to 'stand united against this misguided sect and deviant group,' referring to the Houthis.
• The Saudi-led coalition's offensive aims to reclaim territory and assert control over Yemen, while the Houthis continue to assert their dominance through military actions and threats.

What's still developing

• Video posted on social media by activists accompanying pro-government factions depicted what was said to be the aftermath of attacks on Houthi positions along the Red Sea coast.
• “They ran away into the sea. We captured some of them, and the rest were killed,” said one fighter from the Giants Brigade, a pro-government group.
• Iran has incorporated the rebels as members of its anti-U.S. coalition, the so-called Axis of Resistance, and has provided weapons, training and other aid to the Houthis, which belong to a branch of Shiite Islam.
• After the Houthis took over the capital, Sanaa, in 2014, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and a coalition of Arab nations launched a bombing campaign in support of anti-Houthi forces.
• In 2022, after years of stalemate, the government and rebels signed on to a ceasefire.
• “The government doesn’t have the capabilities, the materiel, nor the cohesion of the forces,” said Hisham Al-Omeisy, a senior Yemen advisor at the European Institute of Peace.
• The offensive, which had already reclaimed territory overlooking a key waterway, marks a sharp escalation in what thus far been an ancillary conflict in the wider U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
• He added that pro-government factions succeeded in clawing back Mokha, the town of Bab el-Mandeb and a nearby airport from the Houthis — claims the group denied.
• “Our agreement includes an alliance commitment, we stand by our word,” he said.
• That caution may be connected to direct warnings the Houthis have issued to both countries, say analysts.
• Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of the Houthi movement’s political bureau, told an Iraqi television programme this week that Pakistan and Turkiye would be met with an “iron fist” if they entered the war.
• “Sending troops would be difficult because the Pakistan Army is stretched thin on ground due to external and internal threats,” he said, referring to ongoing border clashes with Afghanistan, persistent tensions with India and mounting attacks domestically by armed groups.

Sources

• Los Angeles Timeslink
• Al Jazeeralink
• Arabnewslink
• BBClink
• Dailysabahlink
• Turkiyetodaylink
• Gulfnewslink
• Timesofisraellink
• Thediplomaticinsightlink
• Thenationalnewslink
• Theannapurnaexpresslink
• Sofxlink
• Thedefensewatchlink
• WarpBeat — background on Saudi-Led Coalition Rejects Houthi Claim of Riyadh Attack link
• CNN — video link