ADEN: Houthi Rebel Attacks Claim Lives in Mokha
On Sunday, attacks by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in the Yemeni port city of Mokha resulted in the deaths of at least 11 individuals, according to a medical source. This incident followed an earlier drone strike that targeted a Saudi oil refinery located along the Red Sea coast.
The fragile peace that had been maintained in Yemen’s civil war between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed government appears to have crumbled last month, with renewed clashes involving U.S. allies and Iran’s regional partners.
The UN-sponsored agreement established in 2022 seems to have broken down as the Houthis declared a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia. This blockade has affected Saudi ships in the Red Sea and targeted key oil infrastructure, mirroring Iran’s actions in the Strait of Hormuz.
According to reports from Mokha, three civilians and eight military personnel lost their lives in the Houthi strikes. Additionally, 32 others were injured, with six of them being civilians. The source indicated that the civilian injuries were directly tied to attacks on the city’s port.
Military sources confirmed that at least eight soldiers had died and over 40 were injured in the strikes. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree stated the group targeted “Saudi enemy” troops and their equipment using missiles and drones.
Earlier, Saree mentioned that the Houthis had also attacked an oil facility on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast. This strike came after the Saudi energy ministry reported extinguishing a fire at the Jazan facility. Saree claimed the assault was a response to drone incursions into northwest Yemen from Saudi Arabia.
The two military sources from the Aden-based government noted that the Houthi attacks on Mokha involved multiple waves of missile and drone assaults. One source reported that other pro-government forces and installations outside Mokha were also targeted, along with locations on islands near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a crucial shipping route in the region.
