Houthis claim Saudi Arabia carried out more than 40 airstrikes in Yemen
Yemen’s Houthis said that on Wednesday Saudi Arabia carried out more than 40 airstrikes in several regions of Yemen, including the provinces of Marib, Al-Jawf, Taiz and Hodeidah. Dawn reports, citing the Houthi television channel Almasirah.
Taiz and Hodeidah are areas of fierce clashes between the Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition government. There has been no official comment from Saudi Arabia regarding reports of the new strikes.
Attacks on oil facilities
Reports of the new airstrikes emerged the day after a large-scale Houthi missile and drone attack on Saudi Arabia. According to the source, the attack caused fires at oil facilities, temporarily suspended their operations, and injured 73 people.
On Tuesday, Saudi authorities promised to respond to the Houthi attacks. Later, Saudi civil defense announced and shortly afterward canceled a warning for the southern province of Khamis Mushait near Yemen.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
Fighting near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait
According to the publication, more than 500 people have been killed since the start of a large-scale Houthi offensive last week to seize territories around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which provides access to the Red Sea shipping route.
The Houthis are also attacking Saudi oil tankers. Analysts cited by Dawn consider these shipments important for exports after the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
On Tuesday, the European Union called on the Houthis to immediately halt all attacks inside and outside Yemen, including against commercial shipping in the Red Sea. European External Action Service spokesperson Anouar El Anouni called such actions a dangerous escalation.
The Houthis fought the Saudi-led coalition from 2015 until a UN-mediated truce was reached in 2022. The current escalation is taking place amid the war in the Middle East, which began in late February after US and Israeli strikes on Iran.
