Houthi missile and drone attacks kill dozens of Yemeni government troops

Yemeni government troops suffered heavy casualties in a series of missile and drone attacks carried out by Houthi rebels on Thursday. According to AFP, at least 38 members of the internationally recognized government forces were killed and 29 wounded in the assault, marking the deadliest such attack since a 2022 UN-brokered truce.

The Houthis blamed the strikes on a "Saudi-backed military buildup," a claim that reflects the broader US-Iran confrontation. Military spokesman Yahya Saree said the rebels targeted government positions with ballistic missiles and drones, citing al-Ruwaik, al-Thaniyah and al-Abr as some of the areas hit. The attacks came just days after the Houthis declared the end of a de-escalation phase they had initiated in July, accusing Saudi Arabia of air strikes on Sanaa International Airport as they received an Iranian aircraft in the capital.

In response, the Houthis imposed a maritime blockade of Saudi ports and launched attacks on Saudi-linked shipping. The conflict, which has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and plunged Yemen into one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, shows no signs of abating despite the formal expiry of the 2022 truce.