Houthi Missile Attack on Yemen Palace Kills Five
A houthi missile attack on Yemen’s presidential palace killed five people and wounded 16 on Thursday, Yemeni officials said, in one of the most high-profile strikes yet against the country’s internationally recognized government. The missile-and-drone assault hit the al-Maashiq Palace compound in Aden, the government’s interim capital and the prime minister’s workplace.
Yemen’s health minister, Qasim Mohammed Buhaibeh, said the dead and injured included security personnel guarding the complex and civilian employees. Two members of Prime Minister Shaya Al-Zindani’s security detail were among those killed, officials said. The prime minister and other government officials were safe; one minister said Zindani was inside the compound during the attack but was not harmed.
Houthis Claim a Saudi Target
The Houthi rebels, who are aligned with Iran, said they had aimed at what they described as a Saudi military operations center inside the compound. Yemen’s information minister said five missiles struck the palace complex, and officials said the Houthis also launched several ballistic missiles toward the central city of Marib.
Zindani condemned the strike on X, calling it a cowardly act and accusing the Houthis of continuing to target civilians and civilian facilities.
Escalation on Multiple Fronts
The attack landed amid a rapid intensification of strikes across Yemen and into Saudi Arabia. The Saudi-led coalition said its air defenses had intercepted Houthi drones targeting the kingdom’s southern region and the city of Khamis Mushait. Coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Malki said the Houthis had attacked King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh 20 times since the beginning of October and urged the militia to halt attacks on civilian infrastructure.
Yemen’s civil war flared back to life in July after the collapse of a years-long truce. The government launched its “Yemen’s Dawn” campaign against the rebels earlier this month, while a Houthi offensive in September seized stretches of Red Sea coastline, and fighting has intensified around the besieged city of Taiz.
Source: BBC