Yemen government forces advance on Bab el-Mandeb in offensive against Houthis

Yemen's Houthis declared they had targeted Riyadh's international airport, an Aramco refinery, and several other sites in Saudi Arabia on Monday, as the Saudi-led coalition reported destroying Houthi targets on the Red Sea coast. Concurrently, Pakistan and Turkey pledged to send troops to Saudi Arabia under a new mutual defense pact, following weeks of Houthi assaults.

The Yemeni military launched over 1,000 strikes and began an offensive on the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, while the Saudi-led coalition sent 100 warplanes on dawn sorties. Riyadh experienced explosions as tensions intensified, and a Houthi spokesman claimed the group struck the capital's King Khalid International Airport, an Aramco refinery, and other targets in the south.

The Yemeni government vowed to retake all Houthi territory, home to most of the population, in a bid to end the decade-long conflict. The Iran-backed group recently seized coastal areas along the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab Strait, crucial chokepoints for oil and cargo shipping. Representatives from Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Turkey met in Riyadh under a joint defense agreement, committing to rapid military assistance.

The UN secretary-general expressed deep concern over the escalating violence and condemned the Houthis' cross-border attacks on Saudi Arabia. The strain on the global oil system deepened as Houthi attacks targeted Saudi oil infrastructure and tankers in the Red Sea. Saudi Aramco's CEO warned that global oil reserves were dangerously low due to the Middle East war.

Pro-government forces reportedly cut off the sole supply route to the Houthi-held city of Mocha, but the recapture of the port remained unconfirmed. Yemen's civil war, which began in 2014, has seen intensified fighting in recent weeks, displacing over 184,000 people.