The Houthi movement in Yemen reported on Sunday that Saudi Arabia conducted more than 50 airstrikes against their positions within a 24-hour period. This escalation follows a significant drone and missile attack claimed by the Iran-backed group on a Saudi military base earlier in the week.
Renewed fighting has intensified between the Houthis and Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces since July, marked by the Houthi declaration of a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia and attacks on its shipping in the Red Sea. The recent clashes come after a week-long Houthi offensive that resulted in the capture of Yemen's Red Sea coast, strengthening their control over the strategically important Bab al-Mandab Strait. This waterway is crucial for Saudi oil exports, particularly as the Strait of Hormuz remains a point of tension.
Yahya Saree, the Houthi military spokesman, stated via Telegram that "the criminal Saudi enemy has carried out 58 airstrikes in the past 24 hours." The Houthis themselves launched what they described as their heaviest missile and drone assault in years against Saudi Arabia, causing fires at oil sites and injuring 73 people. Almasirah, the group's television channel, reported two Saudi strikes on Saada, a Houthi stronghold, and artillery fire in the border district of Monabbih. Later, Almasirah reported two additional Saudi strikes on a market in the northern Al-Jawf province.
Since Tuesday, the Houthis have claimed to have sustained over 100 strikes against their positions, though Riyadh has not officially confirmed these figures. Thus far, the Saudi strikes have primarily targeted front lines in support of Yemeni government forces, rather than the Houthi leadership or their capital, Sanaa. Yemen's civil war, which began in 2014 with the Houthi seizure of the capital, saw a UN-brokered ceasefire in 2022 after a Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015. The conflict had been largely dormant until its resurgence in July.
Saudi Arabia has provided limited public information regarding Houthi strikes on its territory, though it issues daily alerts about potential attacks in southern regions near Yemen. On Sunday, the Saudi civil defense agency issued and quickly rescinded alerts for the city of Abha and the Khamis Mushait region. Earlier in the day, the Houthis announced they had used drones and missiles to attack the Sharurah military base in southern Saudi Arabia, targeting "weapons depots and command and control centres." Late Saturday, the Saudi civil defense agency reported that two individuals were injured in the Jizan region by a projectile fired by the Houthis.
The recent surge in hostilities has displaced nearly 86,000 people, according to a UN agency on Sunday, an increase of 10,000 from the previous day. The International Organization for Migration noted that over 2,000 displaced individuals have reached Djibouti. The ongoing civil war in Yemen has resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths and precipitated a severe humanitarian crisis. The current phase of hostilities commenced in July when the Houthis permitted an Iranian plane to land, bypassing Saudi airspace control, which led to a retaliatory strike on Sanaa airport, an action the Houthis attributed to Saudi Arabia.
