Saudi Arabia threatens ‘firm’ action as Houthi strikes leave 13 wounded

Saudi Arabia has threatened a tougher response to Yemen’s Houthi rebels after missile and drone attacks wounded 13 people and damaged homes and vehicles in several parts of the kingdom.

The Riyadh-led coalition said the attacks targeted Khamis Mushait, Abha and Taif, with seven houses and two vehicles damaged.

Saudi civil defence issued air-raid warnings across six regions early Tuesday before the alerts were lifted.

The Houthis, who are backed by Iran, claimed they launched a major assault on King Khalid airbase in Khamis Mushait using “dozens of ballistic missiles and drones.”

A resident told AFP that the attack produced “intense blasts” and fires that continued for a “long time.”

“Honestly, we couldn’t sleep at all,” the resident said.

The Saudi-led coalition said it would respond decisively to the attacks, promising to act “firmly to protect the sovereignty of the Kingdom.”

It also vowed to take “all necessary operational measures to deter this… hostile and extremist approach.”

The Houthis said Saudi Arabia retaliated with more than 50 strikes, matching the number reported the previous day.

Yemen conflict spills into wider regional crisis

The latest confrontation follows renewed fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces in Yemen after the civil war reignited in July.

The Houthis subsequently declared a maritime blockade on Riyadh and began attacking ships in the Red Sea. Last week, they seized Yemen’s Red Sea coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a strategically important waterway whose significance has grown as the wider US-Iran war disrupts shipping around the Strait of Hormuz.

The Houthis have also targeted Saudi oil infrastructure, contributing to growing pressure on global energy markets and pushing oil prices above $100.

In western Yemen, a Houthi attack on Monday killed eight government soldiers, according to two military sources.

Despite dozens of Saudi airstrikes on Houthi-controlled areas, the group has so far continued its rapid offensive.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was expected to meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Tuesday. US media reported last week that US President Donald Trump had rejected a personal appeal from the Saudi crown prince to intervene in the conflict.

Houthis: attacks will continue

Hazem al-Assad of the Houthi politburo said the group would intensify its response if Saudi Arabia continued its military campaign.

“The Yemeni response will continue and escalate as long as they (Saudi Arabia) persist in their aggression against our people,” he said.

The escalation comes as the wider regional conflict remains at a stalemate.

Trump said Monday that he was willing to consider talks with Iran, declaring on Truth Social: “The failing Nation of Iran wants to make a deal, quickly and badly. I will determine whether or not the U.S.A. will choose to engage — The concept of which we are open to.”

But Iran’s top security official, Mohsen Rezaei, rejected the prospect of immediate negotiations, saying on X that “there will be no negotiations until Iran’s conditions are met. That is all there is to it.”

Iran has demanded war reparations and the lifting of sanctions as conditions for ending the war and its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

Gulf-Iran talks postponed

A planned meeting between Gulf states and Iran on the future of Hormuz was postponed on Monday, with Tehran accusing Saudi Arabia of using the Yemen conflict as a reason to delay the discussions.

Iran has long supported the Houthis, part of its anti-Israel “axis of resistance”, including with weapons and technology. Tehran denies involvement in the current war.

“Iran does not interfere in Yemeni affairs,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said Monday, describing the Houthis as “entirely independent actors who make their decisions based on their own interests”.

The Houthis seized Sanaa in 2014, forcing Yemen’s government to Aden. Saudi Arabia then led a coalition into the war in 2015 to support the government, launching sustained airstrikes as the conflict developed into one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.

The UN migration agency said Monday that the renewed fighting had displaced 93,864 people from their homes.

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