The US-Iran war: the Houthis' attacks on Saudi Arabia and the counteroffensive

Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Iran of flying Revolutionary Guard members into Yemen, and sources described commanders, advisers and missile and drone equipment arriving days before the blockade was announced.^[13] Reuters subsequently reported assessments by Saudi Arabia and regional partners that the Houthis had attacked Saudi Arabia from Iraqi territory in coordination with Iraqi armed groups.^[4] In August, Yemeni authorities said a Houthi attack on a cargo ship in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait killed six people, including two rescuers. A separate report described a deadly Houthi attack on the government-held port of Mokha.^[14]

In early September, the Houthis launched a ground offensive along Yemen's west coast, and sources told AFP that more than 120 people had been killed in the fighting.^[15] The renewed fighting followed the collapse of a four-year truce in July, and Houthi attacks on Saudi cities and oil facilities continued.^[16] The rebels seized ground overlooking the strait. Saudi Arabia said it intercepted a Houthi drone near Mecca; the Houthis denied that allegation.^[6] Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman called Trump twice to urge US strikes on the Houthis, and Trump declined.^[7] US officials met Houthi representatives in Oman days after the rebels seized the coast.^[17] The United Nations reported that at least 112,000 people had been displaced inside Yemen and nearly 3,000 had crossed the Red Sea to Djibouti.^[18]

In September, reporting described a Houthi missile attack on Riyadh and smoke and flames near the capital's airport.^[5] France said it would send troops, radar and air defenses to protect Saudi Arabia's Yanbu oil hub, while Britain provided a tanker plane to refuel Saudi warplanes.^[11] In early October, Yemeni government forces began a major offensive on the Red Sea coast under an intensified Saudi-led air campaign, according to AP reporting.^[8]

In October, Saudi civil aviation authorities said an attack on Riyadh's international airport killed 12 people from several countries and wounded more than 300. A Saudi-led coalition blamed the Houthis.^[9] Saudi authorities said one American was among the dead.^[19] Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces said they were advancing against the Houthis.^[20] Inside Yemen, a Houthi strike on a government training camp in Shabwa province killed at least 60 people, according to officials, in one of the deadliest attacks in months.^[21]

Saudi Arabia's partners stepped up their support. Britain said it would fly defensive air missions over the kingdom,^[10] and Turkey moved to ratify a defense pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan that would let it send military personnel.^[12] The attacks also disrupted life in the kingdom. Saudi Arabia postponed its annual "Davos in the Desert" investment conference until next year,^[22] and Riyadh's airport reopened to limited traffic on October 21.^[23] French President Emmanuel Macron made a surprise stop in Saudi Arabia, the first visit by a Western leader since the Houthi escalation,^[24] and the State Department ordered some embassy staff and their families to leave the kingdom.^[25] Debris from an intercepted drone killed two people at an oil facility,^[26] and Saudi Aramco evacuated its headquarters in Dhahran.^[27]

The war widened in late October. The Saudi-led coalition said it had destroyed Houthi missile facilities and degraded the group's ability to strike the kingdom,^[28] while the Houthis claimed a missile hit on the Ras Tanura refinery, which Saudi authorities disputed, and attacked Aden airport after warning people to evacuate.^[29][30] Egypt's parliament authorized its military to help defend Saudi Arabia,^[31] and the AP reported, citing data and officials, that Russian satellites helped Iran's allies strike the kingdom.^[32] Water and fresh food ran short in the besieged Yemeni city of Taiz,^[33] and the Houthis said Saudi-led airstrikes killed 13 people at a market in northern Yemen.^[34] The disruption reached sports as well: the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia was postponed from January to December.^[35]

The fighting intensified in November. A Houthi missile attack damaged a building belonging to Saudi Aramco in Riyadh's financial district,^[36] and Reuters reported that Syria was giving Saudi Arabia military advice and training and had sent a limited number of personnel.^[37] The Houthis said Saudi-led airstrikes killed at least 44 people near Sanaa,^[38] and at least 30 people were reported killed at a market in Taiz province, where the Houthis blamed Saudi strikes while government forces and local authorities disputed the claim.^[39]