Houthi Strikes on Saudi Arabia Wound 73 as Riyadh Vows Retaliation
Riyadh-led coalition says civilian and economic sites were targeted as fighting intensifies near the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Strikes launched by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis against Saudi Arabia wounded 73 civilians, a Riyadh-led coalition said Tuesday, as it vowed to take measures to neutralize the threat following a renewed escalation in the conflict.
The coalition’s Joint Forces Command said the attacks targeted civilian and economic sites, while Houthi media reported that the group had struck several targets in Saudi Arabia, including Abha International Airport, King Khalid Air Base and facilities belonging to state-owned oil giant Saudi Aramco in Abha and Jizan.
“The Terrorist Houthi Militia’s senseless attacks, the latest of which targeted civilian and economic sites,” resulted in injuries to 73 civilians, the coalition said in a statement.
“The Command will also take all necessary measures and actions to respond to the sources of the threat and neutralize its danger,” it added.
The strikes came a day after the Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out attacks in Yemen, including a deadly bombardment of a prison in the northern province of Jawf.
Houthi-affiliated Almasirah television reported that an attack on a prison in Al-Hazm killed 11 people and left 20 inmates missing beneath the rubble, citing Hassan Saboula, director-general of civil defense in Jawf province.
The Saba news agency, also affiliated with the Houthis, reported that a child visiting the facility was among those killed.
The latest escalation comes as Houthi forces intensify their offensive along Yemen’s western Red Sea coast in an attempt to advance toward the Bab al-Mandab Strait, according to regional security experts.
The strategic waterway connects the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and serves as a major maritime passage for international trade. Its importance has increased for Saudi Arabia amid disruptions to shipping and energy routes linked to the wider US-Iran war and Tehran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
The fighting has also raised concerns over the security of regional energy infrastructure and shipping routes, particularly as the Houthis seek to expand their territorial control along Yemen’s Red Sea coastline.
Yemen’s conflict between the Houthis and the internationally recognized government, which is backed by a Saudi-led coalition, reignited in July following several years of relative calm.
The Houthis have controlled much of Yemen’s major population centers, including the capital, Sanaa, since seizing large parts of the country during the civil war.
The latest fighting near the Red Sea has reportedly killed more than 300 people and displaced hundreds of families, adding a new humanitarian dimension to an escalation that threatens to further destabilize one of the Middle East’s most strategically important maritime corridors.