Houthi rebels launched a barrage of ballistic missiles and drones against Yemeni government military camps on Thursday, killing at least 30 soldiers and wounding more than a dozen in some of the deadliest strikes in years of the country's civil war.
The assaults hit installations in Marib and Hadramout provinces, including bases of the Emergency Forces and Homeland Shield units. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the operation destroyed a large number of buildings, weapons and military vehicles and caused hundreds of casualties among what he called Saudi-backed mercenaries. A Yemeni military source said at least 58 troops had been killed, while other accounts put the toll lower. The Houthis said the attacks responded to a Saudi military build-up along the border.
The US embassy condemned the strikes as cowardly, and the Saudi-led coalition said a separate Houthi strike injured 11 civilians in the Saudi border city of Najran. Deputy UN spokesman Farhan Haq called on all parties to exercise restraint. The violence follows the Houthis' July announcement of a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia and attacks on Red Sea shipping.