The Houthis launched a major attack on the Saudi airbase with ballistic missiles and drones

Yemen's Houthis said on Monday that they launched a large-scale attack with ballistic missiles and drones on the Saudi airbase in the southern city of Khamis Mushit. Houthi army spokesman Yahya Saree said in a statement that the group targeted the King Khalid airbase with dozens of ballistic missiles and drones. According to his claim, aircraft hangars, radars, runways, arms and ammunition depots and other military facilities were targeted in the attack, which caused heavy damage to the airbase.
The Houthis said the operation was carried out in response to Saudi airstrikes in Yemen. They claim that Saudi F-15 and Typhoon fighter jets have carried out more than 300 attacks in several provinces of Yemen from the bases of Khamis Mushit and Taif during the last five days.
The Houthis, officially known as Ansarullah, said they would continue attacks against Saudi military targets until Riyadh halted its airstrikes and lifted its siege of Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.
Saree warned that any new aggression would be met with wider and more intense operations, and said the group would continue to target targets far inside Saudi Arabia's territory.
Saree said, "We will continue to target Saudi military centers until the aggression ends and the siege is lifted from Yemen."
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia's Civil Defense issued an alert in Khamis Mushit Governorate, but later said the threat had been averted. He urged residents to continue to follow civil defense instructions and refrain from crowding and filming the attack.
The attack marks a significant escalation in cross-border tensions between Saudi Arabia and the pro-Iranian Houthis. The Houthis captured Yemen's capital Sanaa in 2014 and have been fighting Saudi-backed forces for more than a decade since then.
In addition, the escalation of the ongoing conflict between Iran and the United States following the involvement of the Houthis in the region has increased instability and insecurity in the region, affecting maritime trade activities in the Red Sea. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baqaei said Tehran has "definitely nothing to do" with the ongoing crisis in Yemen.
Armed forces affiliated with Yemen's internationally recognized government have recaptured several positions from the Houthis and are making advances in the southwestern province of Taiz amid intensifying fighting.
According to Al Jazeera, government forces are being supported by airstrikes, targeting Houthi bases and gatherings along Yemen's west coast.
Al-Jazeera quoted a source as saying, "The air force is continuously bombarding the Houthis in and around Mokha and Zabab.
The Houthis, also known as Ansarullah, said on Monday they had carried out a large-scale attack on targets in Saudi Arabia with dozens of ballistic missiles and drones.
According to the group, the attacks targeted military installations and infrastructure at the King Khalid Airbase in Khamis Mushit, including aircraft hangars, radar installations, runways and ammunition depots.
The Houthis said the attacks were in response to a Saudi military campaign, which saw more than 300 airstrikes across Yemen in five days.
Yemen's more than a decade-long civil war has intensified since July, threatening a UN-brokered ceasefire that halted widespread violence in 2022. This increase in tension has happened after the Houthis announced a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia and attacks on ships in the Red Sea.
Clashes intensified after Houthi forces seized parts of Yemen's Red Sea coast last week, strengthening their position along the Bab al-Mandab strait. Bab al-Mandab is one of the most important sea passages in the world.
According to several media reports, the Houthis have also captured several important parts of the Greater Hanish and Lesser Hanish islands, located north of Bab al-Mandab.
Bab al-Mandab is an important trade route connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the wider Indian Ocean, and a significant portion of world maritime trade is transported through this route.
The tensions have heightened fears of disruptions to shipping and energy supplies in the region, especially at a time when the Strait of Hormuz is severely restricted by the broader conflict between Iran, Israel and the United States.