Aden, August 7: Eighteen Yemeni security personnel, including an officer, were killed and several others injured in a Houthi missile and drone attack on government forces, Yemen’s army said on Thursday.
According to the army, the attack involved ballistic missiles and drones, leaving 17 soldiers and one officer dead. Several personnel also sustained injuries, Al Jazeera reported.
The attack comes amid escalating hostilities in the region, with the Iran-backed Houthi movement intensifying military operations inside Yemen and attacks on maritime targets linked to Saudi Arabia.
Earlier in the day, the Houthis claimed responsibility for a ballistic missile strike on the Saudi oil tanker Daisy in the Gulf of Aden. In a statement posted on Telegram, the group alleged that the vessel was hit and forced to change course.
The Houthis said the strike was part of what they described as a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia through the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, adding that attacks on Saudi oil vessels would continue until their demands were met.
The claim followed another announcement by the group a day earlier, in which it said it had targeted the Saudi oil tanker Wafaa off the coast of Yanbu in the northern Red Sea. Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed the group has targeted eight Saudi oil tankers since launching its maritime campaign on July 22.
Meanwhile, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported two separate maritime security incidents involving tankers near Yemen and the Strait of Hormuz on August 5. It said all crew members were safe, no environmental damage was reported, and investigations into the incidents are ongoing.