Houthi missile attacks kill 58 Saudi-backed Yemeni govt forces
Updated Aug. 7, 2026, 8:15 a.m. | By AFP At least 58 Yemeni government troops have been killed in missile and drone attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels,…
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Updated Aug. 7, 2026, 8:15 a.m. | By AFP
At least 58 Yemeni government troops have been killed in missile and drone attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels, marking one of the deadliest days in the country's civil war in four years. The escalation comes amid rising regional tensions linked to the US-Israeli conflict with Iran.
Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis killed at least 58 government troops in missile and drone attacks on Thursday, a military source said, in one of the deadliest days of the country's civil war in four years.
The attacks come as Yemen is increasingly drawn into the US-Israeli war with Iran, with the rebels stepping up attacks against both government forces and neighbouring Saudi Arabia, a key US ally and supporter of the internationally recognised Yemeni government.
The evolving regional situation has prompted Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan to seek closer security ties, with the three Muslim-majority nations set to sign a joint defence agreement in Jeddah on Friday, according to Saudi sources with knowledge of the matter.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the rebels attacked government positions with ballistic missiles and drones in response to an alleged military buildup backed by neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
The attacks killed at least 58 government troops and injured dozens, according to the military source who spoke on condition of anonymity. Medical sources had earlier spoken of 38 dead.
A military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Thursday's attacks on troop camps were the worst in Yemen since 2022.
Yemen's defence ministry said in a statement that its armed forces would respond to the attacks "at the appropriate place and time".
The escalation spilled across the border on Thursday, with Saudi officials saying Houthi attacks wounded 11 civilians in the southern Najran region.
Coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Malki said the wounded included seven Saudis, a Yemeni, two Egyptians and a Pakistani, according to a statement carried in the official Saudi Press Agency.
Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition backing Yemen's government against the Houthis since 2015.
Al-Malki accused the rebels of carrying out "indiscriminate shelling against civilian objects" and said coalition forces would continue taking measures to protect civilians.
The rebels have ramped up the provocations against their Saudi foes since last month, adding to the regional chaos since the US-Iran war erupted on February 28.
The military official told AFP that a camp in the al-Ruwaik area of Marib province, in central Yemen, had been attacked, as well as in the Al-Abr and Al-Wadiah areas of Hadramawt, near the border with Saudi Arabia.
One missile attack hit troops during their morning formation at the camp in Marib, "killing and wounding at least 45 personnel", said a military source, who declined to be named for security reasons.
Saree named Al-Ruwaik, al-Thaniyah and al-Abr as being among the areas hit, w…