Yemeni army downs Houthi drones over Aden, strikes Sanaa targets

Army spokesman Majed al-Nuzaili said air defenses intercepted and downed Houthi suicide drones over the interim capital "before they reached their targets in civilian areas and neighborhoods," noting the incident marked the first such attack on the city since August 24, according to Anadolu Agency.

Government strikes target Houthi strongholds

Al-Nuzaili stated on social media platform X that government forces hit "high-value targets in the capital Sanaa" and "11 high-value targets in the Saada province," though he did not specify the weapons employed. In an earlier statement, he said air force warplanes carried out 20 strikes over three hours against Houthi movements, reinforcements, and military equipment in Taiz province, targeting positions in Humair, Bani Bakari, Samea, al-Aqroud, and other locations. The Taiz Military Axis media center reported that "intense clashes" were underway between government forces and the Houthis on the northern front of Taiz city, as fighting escalated across several fronts over the past 24 hours alongside dozens of airstrikes, according to the agency.

Broadest escalation since September

The latest fighting marks the broadest military escalation between government forces and the Houthis since September 10, when the group seized the strategic city of Mokha near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The clashes are part of an escalation that began in July, the largest since the relative calm that followed a 2022 truce.

Yemen has been at war since the Houthis seized Sanaa and several provinces in 2014, prompting a Saudi-led Arab coalition to intervene in support of the Yemeni government the following year. There was no immediate comment from the Houthi group on the army's statements.