Saudi airstrike on Yemen’s Taiz kills seven

A Saudi airstrike on Taiz in southwestern Yemen killed seven people and wounded 40 others, Houthi media reported on Sunday.

Al-Masirah TV, a media outlet affiliated with the Iran-backed Houthis, reported that the casualties occurred at a central marketplace in Taiz, shortly after announcing that a Saudi fighter jet had targeted the area.

Yemen’s war, which had seen a period of relative calm, reignited in July amid the broader conflict spreading across the Middle East.

Fighting intensified in September after the Houthis launched a rapid offensive and seized Yemen’s entire Red Sea coastline, including the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a strategically important shipping route.

The Houthis have also imposed a blockade on Saudi energy exports, which have already been affected by Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

On Saturday, Saudi Arabia said its forces had intercepted two Houthi drones flying toward Riyadh.

Schools in the Saudi capital announced on Sunday that classes would move online for a week, according to messages sent to parents and reviewed by AFP. No reason was given for the decision.

Taiz, a major city held by Yemen’s internationally recognised government, has become a key front in the conflict between Houthi and government forces. The war began in 2014 when the Houthis captured the capital, Sanaa, from the Saudi-backed government before expanding their control across large parts of northern Yemen.

Despite Saudi military support, government forces have struggled to halt the latest Houthi offensive.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said on Saturday that Saudi aircraft had carried out 27 strikes across the provinces of Taiz, Marib, Saada, Amran, Ibb and Hajjah.