Houthi attack on port kills four eroding truce with Yemen’s government

SANAA: Yemen's internationally recognized government spokesperson disclosed on Friday that a Houthi strike targeting the port city of Mokha resulted in the loss of eight lives. Simultaneously, Houthi media reported that the rebels had also launched an attack against a Saudi Aramco facility in Najran, utilizing a drone, and claimed the mission accomplished its intended goal.

The ongoing civil war in Yemen, which has been marred by the Houthis' aggression and a Saudi-backed authorities' response, seemed to unravel last month. The rebels have escalated their campaign by carrying out devastating assaults on government-controlled territories and declaring a maritime blockade on Saudi ports, targeting ships in the Red Sea and claiming strikes on oil infrastructure.

A Yemeni military official outlined the attack on Mokha, stating that five missiles were fired at commercial vessels unloading at the port, with two of them ablaze. Additionally, two security personnel perished in this incident. The Houthi media, in contrast, cited a rebel military source who claimed the group had orchestrated a drone strike on a Saudi Aramco site in Najran, southwest Saudi Arabia, and successfully fulfilled its objective.

This series of attacks, alongside Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, has become a significant point of contention between Tehran and Washington as part of their efforts to resolve the Middle East conflict, following the US and Israel's February invasion.