Houthis say Saudi forces launch 156 strikes across Yemen, claim govt advance repelled

Sanaa, Oct 8 (IANS) Yemen’s Houthi group has said that Saudi forces had carried out 156 air and missile strikes on the Houthi-held capital Sanaa and five other provinces, as the group reported fresh fighting with government forces in Yemen’s northern province of Al-Jawf near the Saudi border.

In a statement posted on social media platform X on Wednesday (local time), Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said the Saudi strikes hit areas in Sanaa and the provinces of Taiz, Saada, Al-Jawf, Marib and Amran, claiming that civilian sites were among the targets but provided no details.

According to Sarea, the latest attacks brought the number of Saudi air and missile strikes recorded by the group since the current escalation began to 1,798.

There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia.

Sarea also said Houthi forces had repelled an attempt by government forces to advance toward the group’s positions in eastern Al-Jawf, reports Xinhua news agency.

He said the Houthis targeted troop gatherings in Al-Jawf with ballistic missiles and drones, claiming dozens of government soldiers were killed or wounded and several military vehicles destroyed.

Also on Wednesday, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said that it had destroyed a ballistic missile launch platform that it said had been used in an attack on the Saudi capital Riyadh.

Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Maliki said on his official account on social media platform X that the platform was destroyed in Sanaa while preparations were underway for an imminent attack against Saudi Arabia.

The cross-border attacks came amid intensified fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces, particularly near the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Saudi forces have stepped up air operations, while the Houthis have increased missile and drone strikes inside Saudi Arabia.

Yemen’s conflict began in late 2014, when the Houthis seized Sanaa and much of northern Yemen. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015 in support of the internationally recognised government, now based in the southern port city of Aden.

–IANS

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