The Houthis have launched an attack on the Red Sea port city of al-Makha (Mocha), killing at least four people, Yemen’s internationally recognised government says. The government said the Houthis fired six ballistic missiles at al-Makha on Friday, amid an escalation in hostilities between the Iran-aligned group and its Saudi-backed opponents. The armed forces aligned with the Yemeni government said the attack targeted civilian infrastructure and national assets at the port, adding that initial reports said four civilians were killed and several fishing boats were set on fire.
An unnamed military official from Yemen’s government told the news agency that the strike killed at least eight people, including two security personnel. The escalation comes at a time of heightened regional tensions over the US-Israel war on Iran, in which the Houthis have emerged as a key front, raising the prospect of a return to large-scale conflict in Yemen. The Houthis said they had attacked what they described as buildups, weapons and warships belonging to Saudi-backed forces and “mercenaries” in al-Makha with a large number of ballistic missiles, destroying boats and weapons.
Separately, the Houthi-run SABA news agency cited a military source as saying the group had targeted an Aramco facility in the Saudi city of Najran with a drone. The source said the attack was a response to what it described as Saudi military aircraft entering airspace over the northeastern part of Yemen’s Saada governorate. The report did not identify the precise target or say whether it had been hit.
There was no immediate confirmation from Saudi authorities or Aramco. The reported attacks follow a rise in hostilities between the Houthis and Yemen’s internationally recognised government. On Thursday, the Houthis said they had attacked an Aramco refinery in Saudi Arabia’s Jazan with two drones.
Yemen’s violence comes as US-Iran diplomacy remains stalled. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council demanded over the weekend that the US end its blockade, lift sanctions, withdraw troops and pay reparations. US President Donald Trump countered by demanding that Iran pay compensation instead, even as Iran and Oman near a deal on a new transit corridor through Hormuz.
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