US-Israel-Iran War Latest Live News: A crucial maritime corridor has become the centre of a fresh escalation in Yemen’s long-running war, with Saudi-backed government forces pushing against Houthi positions while the group claims to have struck major targets inside Saudi Arabia. The latest fighting has spread across Yemen’s western coast and around Taiz, raising new concerns for shipping through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
The developments followed the announcement of a major government offensive aimed at recovering territory held by the Houthis. Government forces have claimed advances around Dhubab and the Bab al-Mandeb area, while the Houthis have disputed some of those claims.
At the same time, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group had carried out missile and drone operations against Saudi airports, an Aramco refinery and military sites.
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The competing claims could not all be independently verified.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest Live News: Houthis Claim Attacks on Saudi Airports
The Houthis said they launched three military operations against targets in Saudi Arabia.
According to Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree, the first operation targeted King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. He claimed the attack disrupted air traffic.
The second operation targeted an Aramco refinery in Rabigh in Saudi Arabia’s Mecca region. The Houthis claimed the facility caught fire.
The group also said it targeted Abha Airport, the Khamis Mushait military base and another military site in southern Saudi Arabia, along with locations in Najran and Jizan. The claims were reported by regional media, but Saudi authorities had not immediately confirmed them.
The Houthis said they used ballistic and cruise missiles and drones in the attacks.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest Live News: Houthis Warn Airlines Over Saudi Airspace
The Houthi warning went beyond the claimed attacks. The group told international airlines to stop using Saudi airspace, describing it as “a theater for our operations”.
It made an exception for airspace over Mecca and Medina.
The Houthis said the attacks represented retaliation for what they described as 60 Saudi airstrikes and missile attacks against several parts of Yemen during the previous 24 hours.
They named Sanaa, al-Jawf, Taiz, Hodeidah, Saada and Marib among the areas targeted.
The group also claimed that 1,576 Saudi attacks had taken place since the latest escalation began. Those figures have not been independently verified.
US-Israel-Iran War Latest Live News: Yemen Government Launches Major Offensive
The Houthi claims came as Yemen’s internationally recognised government stepped up its military campaign. President Rashad al-Alimi, who heads the Presidential Leadership Council, ordered armed and security forces to begin operations aimed at restoring government control.
“We have instructed the armed forces, security forces and all military formations to begin carrying out their assigned tasks under an approved plan until the country is liberated from the Houthis,” he said.
The announcement marked a significant expansion of the government’s military push after weeks of fighting along the Red Sea coast and around Taiz. Al Jazeera reported that the government described the campaign as an effort to recover territory lost to the Houthis.
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