Agencies | Sanna:
At least 53 people were killed and around 200 injured in a Houthi missile attack on the al-AIam military camp in Yemen’s southern Shabwa governorate on Monday, according to local authorities.
The Iranian-backed Houthi movement reportedly fired three ballistic missiles at the camp while new security recruits were undergoing training, a spokesperson for Yemeni government forces said.
Initial reports from officials representing Yemen’s internationally recognised government and medical sources put the death toll at 18, with more than 30 people injured. The figures rose sharply later on Monday, when Shabwa’s local authority reported 53 deaths and around 200 injuries, according to news agencies.
Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, said those killed were newly recruited personnel and vowed a “firm response” to the attack.
He said the targeting of recruits reflected what he described as the Houthi movement’s resort to attacks when under pressure.
The Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, claimed responsibility for the strike, according to reports. The group described the facility as a “Saudi-backed” military base and said it would continue targeting locations where Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces were stationed.
The attack comes amid a renewed escalation in Yemen’s long-running conflict. Fighting between the internationally recognised government, backed by Saudi Arabia, and the Houthis had eased following a truce in 2022, but regional tensions and recent military developments have contributed to renewed hostilities.
The Houthis seized Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, in 2014 and continue to control significant territory. Government forces have recently launched a counteroffensive, including an operation dubbed “Dawn of Yemen”, aimed at retaking areas held by the group.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia issued alerts to residents of Riyadh on Monday warning of what authorities described as a “hostile aerial threat”, amid reports of stepped-up Houthi attacks targeting Saudi territory, including the capital and the state oil company Aramco.
Earlier, Yemeni government forces said they had targeted Houthi gatherings, vehicles and weapons in al-Aqroudh, al-Shaqab and al-Sarari, south of Taiz, where residents have also been facing fuel shortages and rising prices.
The latest strike underscores the growing risks to military personnel and civilians as fighting intensifies across Yemen.
