Yemeni forces confront drones near vital Aden facilities amid Houthi escalation

Southern Armed Forces loyal to Yemen's government announced early Monday they were confronting hostile drones attempting to approach vital facilities in the interim capital Aden, marking the latest security incident as fighting intensifies along Yemen's critical coastal areas. The announcement was posted on the platform X by forces led by Presidential Leadership Council member Abdul Rahman al-Muharrami. "We are dealing with a number of hostile drones that attempted to approach a number of vital and service facilities in the capital Aden," the forces said, without identifying the attacking party or providing further operational details.

Deadly Houthi strike on Mokha

The drone alert in Aden came as the Yemeni army reported a separate Houthi attack on the city of Mokha and its strategic port in western Yemen that killed seven people, including four soldiers, and injured 30 others. The military said it downed 11 drones involved in the assault on the Red Sea port, which is controlled by National Resistance Forces led by Presidential Leadership Council member Tariq Saleh and lies near the Bab al-Mandab Strait. The Houthis said Sunday they had targeted what they claimed were "Saudi military concentrations and weapons depots in the Mokha area."

Renewed violence after 2022 lull

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree claimed the Mokha assault involved ballistic missiles and drones, alleging the strikes caused extensive damage to military equipment and killed and wounded dozens. Fighting has periodically intensified along several Yemeni fronts since last month, ending a relative lull that had held since April 2022 after nearly 12 years of war between government forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition and the Iranian-backed Houthis. The Houthis seized control of the capital Sanaa and large parts of the country in 2014, prompting Saudi Arabia to lead a coalition supporting the internationally recognized government since 2015.