Yemen's Houthis say they targeted Saudi military vessel in Red Sea

Yemen's Houthi rebels said on Monday they had targeted a Saudi military vessel and four accompanying boats in the Red Sea, as part of their ongoing maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia. The Iran-backed group claimed the attack used multiple ballistic missiles.

Why are the Houthis attacking Saudi Arabia?

The Houthis are targeting Saudi Arabia as part of a maritime blockade they announced last month, after a years-long truce collapsed in Yemen's civil war between the rebels and the Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government. Since then, they have struck tankers in the Red Sea and Saudi oil infrastructure.

What did the Houthis claim in this attack?

Military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group had struck a Saudi military landing ship and four escort patrol boats off the coast of Mokha using several ballistic missiles. He claimed the vessels were sunk or set on fire, though the claim could not be independently verified. Riyadh did not immediately respond to the announcement.

Were there other attacks reported in the region on Monday?

A Yemeni government military source told AFP that seven missiles had targeted the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Gulf of Aden with the Red Sea, along with the coastline near government-controlled Mokha. A Yemeni commercial vessel and a camp belonging to government forces were also hit, the source said, without disclosing damage or casualties. The Houthis separately said they used drones to strike a weapons depot linked to Saudi reinforcements in Marib province.

How does this fit into the wider conflict?

The renewed fighting in Yemen last month coincided with the broader regional war between Iran and the United States, which had already disrupted shipping across the Middle East. Earlier this month, the Houthis carried out their deadliest attacks in years, killing 58 government troops, mainly in Marib province, according to a military source. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has urged both sides to end the fighting immediately, warning it risks pushing Yemen back into full-scale conflict.

What is the background of Yemen's civil war?

Yemen's war began in 2014 and has caused hundreds of thousands of deaths, plunging the country, the poorest on the Arabian Peninsula, into a humanitarian crisis. The Houthis control large parts of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, as well as border areas adjacent to Saudi provinces along the Red Sea.