NewzCAIRO (AP) — Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen overnight claimed new attacks on neighboring Saudi Arabia, as the Saudi-backed Yemeni government described the rebels’ swift advance along the Red Sea coast as a “painful” development in a new front in the Iran war. The Houthis’ capture of a key port city and an island on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial shipping alternative to the Strait of Hormuz, in recent days has alarmed markets and Yemeni civilians who fear a return to devastating civil war. The Houthis claimed more attacks with missiles and drones on Saudi Arabia, which supports Yemen’s internationally recognized government.
A Houthi military spokesperson, Brig. Yahya Saree, claimed in a statement that they targeted a military base in Sharurah province in Saudi Arabia’s Najran region. He didn’t provide evidence or say when the attack occurred.
The Saudi civil defense overnight said a projectile fell in al-Tawwal governorate near the border with Yemen along the Red Sea, injuring two people and damaging a mosque and several other buildings. It also said sirens went off in Sharurah province but didn’t report casualties or damage. There was no Saudi statement Sunday on any new attacks targeting the Houthis, who have been hitting Saudi oil infrastructure and shipping as part of a recently declared blockade.
While the rebels have said there is no threat to other commercial shipping, markets remain wary and oil prices have risen again. Yemen’s government vows to fight back A senior government official in Yemen said its forces will return to the Red Sea coast and fight back, after people fleeing the Houthi advance told The Associated Press they saw forces withdrawing and urging people to run. Sultan al-Arada, a member of the ruling presidential council, described the collapse of government forces in the port city of Mokha and elsewhere on Yemen’s west coast as “painful and regrettable.” Al-Arada, also governor of central Marib province, said in the televised interview aired late Saturday that forces “are currently regrouping and will return to the battle in one form or another.” On Friday, a senior military official with Yemen’s internationally recognized government blamed “lack of coordination” between Yemen’s army and multiple allied militias, saying it gave the Houthis “a priceless opportunity.” The official, who spoke on …
An Iranian commercial ship was struck early Sunday near the Strait of Hormuz, with one person killed, Iranian state media say. Meanwhile, the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen said they fired drones and missiles toward southern Saudi Arabia, putting new pressure on a key U.S. And the presidents of Iran and Egypt have met about the rising regional tensions.
Here’s a look at the latest news in the Middle East. Iran says 1 person killed in strike on commercial ship State-run media said an Iranian commercial vessel was stuck off Qeshm Island, the largest island in the Persian Gulf that sits on the Strait of Hormuz, with one person killed and three wounded. Separately, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations monitor reported a vessel was hit by a projectile while transiting the strait, with no details.
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