Houthis fire missiles at Yemen palace in bid to wipe out Saudi-backed govt, 4 killed

At least five missiles hit Yemen’s presidential palace complex in Aden while the prime minister and other ministers were inside. Four people died, including two guards. The attack was one of the Houthis’ largest attempts to eliminate the Saudi-backed government’s leadership.

The Houthis described the target as a Saudi military operations headquarters. Their spokesperson, Yahya Saree, said the strike followed the group’s policy of targeting Saudi military build-ups. Witnesses heard at least five explosions and saw smoke over the complex.

The attack showed how exposed Yemen’s government remained, even in its interim capital. It also came during a wider escalation involving Houthi missiles and drones aimed at Saudi airports and other facilities. The Saudi-led coalition warned that these attacks threatened civilians and critical infrastructure, while the Houthis warned airlines that Saudi airports and airspace were unsafe.

The Houthis are an Iran-backed, Iran-aligned group involved in Yemen’s civil war. They took control of Sanaa, Yemen’s capital, in 2014. Their expansion challenged the internationally recognised government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia and other coalition members.

The conflict intensified because the Houthis and the Saudi-backed government are competing for control and political authority in Yemen. Saudi Arabia led a military intervention in 2015 after the Houthis seized the capital. The article describes the current fighting as renewed civil war and says the Houthis have attacked Saudi targets in response to Saudi support for government forces.

A UN-brokered truce in 2022 largely halted major fighting, but attempts to create a lasting political settlement stalled. The latest missile and drone exchanges show that the conflict remains unresolved, with regional tensions helping drive renewed attacks.

The palace assault involved at least five missiles and killed four people. Two of those killed were guards. The prime minister and other senior officials escaped, making the attack both deadly and politically significant.

The wider escalation was much larger. Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Maliki said the Houthis had carried out 20 attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh during the month. He said those attacks killed 17 people and wounded 333. The coalition also reported that attacks on Abha airport killed three people and wounded 28.

The coalition said the Houthis had tried to strike dozens of Saudi airports, ports, and oil facilities. It also claimed to have destroyed 127 weapons storage sites and launch platforms in Yemen. The figures come from the Saudi-led coalition and were presented as part of its account of the conflict.

Aden matters politically because it is Yemen’s interim capital and contains the presidential palace complex used by the internationally recognised, Saudi-backed government. An attack there directly threatens the institutions representing that government and can disrupt its leadership.

The article reports that the prime minister and other ministers were present when the missiles arrived. At least five missiles hit the complex, and the officials narrowly escaped. The Houthis said they were targeting what they called a Saudi military operations headquarters, not simply an ordinary civilian building.

The report does not give a separate reason for the officials’ gathering beyond their presence at the palace complex. Their escape prevented an even greater leadership crisis, but four people still died. The strike demonstrated that the government’s interim seat remained vulnerable during the broader escalation with the Houthis and Saudi-led coalition.

Yemen’s conflict began in the sequence described in the article when the Houthis took control of Sanaa, the capital, in 2014. That seizure challenged Yemen’s internationally recognised government and deepened the country’s political and military crisis.

Saudi Arabia led a military intervention in 2015 because it supported the government and its forces. The intervention turned Yemen’s internal conflict into a wider regional confrontation. The Houthis, described as Iran-backed, later launched missiles and drones at Saudi sites, saying their attacks responded to Saudi support for government forces.

A UN-brokered truce in 2022 largely stopped major fighting. An informal ceasefire continued after the agreement expired six months later. However, efforts to turn the truce into a lasting political settlement stalled. New attacks on Saudi facilities and strikes in Aden showed that the conflict still carried serious regional and civilian risks.

When missiles and drones target civilian-linked facilities, people can be killed or injured, while normal travel and commercial activity become dangerous. Airports may face closures or warnings, ports can become unsafe, and oil facilities may be threatened because they support fuel supplies and the wider economy.

The article gives concrete examples. Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Maliki said attacks on King Khalid International Airport killed 17 people and wounded 333 this month. He also said attacks on Abha airport killed three people and wounded 28. The coalition described the wider attacks as a threat to civilian infrastructure.

The Houthi military spokesperson then warned airlines that Saudi airports and airspace were unsafe, excluding Mecca and Medina airspace. Such warnings can deter flights and increase fear, even when damage is uncertain. Continued attacks could deepen civilian harm and make essential transport and energy systems harder to operate.

A ballistic missile is a weapon that receives strong propulsion, then travels along a high, curved flight path before descending toward its target. A drone is an uncrewed aircraft that can be remotely controlled or operate with programmed guidance. Both can carry explosives and reach important sites without sending pilots into danger.

Airports move people and goods. Ports handle shipping and supplies. Oil facilities process or store fuel and support transport, industry, and energy systems. Damage or threats at these locations can therefore affect civilians, commerce, and essential services beyond the immediate strike area.

The article says the Houthis used ballistic missiles and drones against Saudi sites, while the coalition also cited fast boats carrying explosives. It reported attempted attacks on dozens of airports, ports, and oil facilities. The coalition warned that such operations threatened civilian infrastructure, and the Houthis warned that Saudi airspace and airports were unsafe.