Saudi Arabia, Houthis exchange blows as conflict escalates

At least five people were killed in the escalation between the Iran-backed Houthirebel group and the internationally recognized Yemeni government, supported by Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia accused the Houthis of a "cowardly" strike on Mecca, the holiest city in Islam and the site of the hajj and umrah pilgrimages, this week. 

The rebel group denied the accusations.

Meanwhile, the Houthis claimed Saudi warplanes targeted three telecommunication towers in Taiz in southwestern Yemen.

According to the Almisrah TV channel, backed by the Houthis, one civilian was killed in the town of Abs in the northwest, with the channel later reporting that three children were killed by strikes carried out by Yemen's internationally recognized government.

In Saudi Arabia, one person was killed by shrapnel from a downed drone in the Mecca area, the country's civil defense agency said. Damage was also caused to buildings and vehicles.

This was the first reported death in Saudi Arabia in the current escalation between the two sides.

Important strait taken over

The truce between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia, agreed on in 2022, collapsed in July after the Iran-backed group allowed an Iranian plane to land in Yemen's capital Sanaa, which defied the Saudis' control over Yemeni airspace. As a result of the escalation, the Houthis announced a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia.

The Houthis have controlled Sanaa and much of Yemen's more populous western areas since the start of Yemen's civil war in 2014.

The rebel group has reported dozens of Saudi strikes since its recent offensive to secure control over the coastal areas near the Red Sea's Bab al-Mandab Strait, one of the world's most important shipping routes, from government hands.

The strait's importance has increased since Iran put restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz over the US and Israel's war with Tehran.

The conflict in Yemen has forced more than 100,000 people to flee their homes, according to UN figures.

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Edited by: Saim Dušan Inayatullah

Houthi gains in Yemen threaten key Red Sea shipping route