Joint forces target missile batteries and storage sites following fatal cross-border strikes, pledging continuous air support for Yemeni government troops.
RIYADH, Oct 10 —A Saudi-led military coalition destroyed 136 Houthi targets across northern Yemen, coalition spokesman Major General Turki Al-Malki announced Saturday, describing the sorties as part of a sweeping campaign to dismantle the group’s ballistic missile operations.
The expanded air offensive comes amid renewed clashes between the Iran-backed Houthi militia and forces aligned with Yemen’s internationally recognized government. Fighting reignited sharply in July before spilling across the border, triggering reciprocal missile and drone exchanges between Yemen and Saudi territory.
Coalition jets hit weapons caches, command hubs, and mobile launching platforms positioned in areas under Houthi control. Major General Al-Malki stated that joint air wings are maintaining round-the-clock combat air patrols to protect frontline advances by Yemeni army units.
“We are carrying out a large-scale operation targeting the personnel and capabilities of the Houthi terrorist militia,” Al-Malki said in statements released by the coalition. “We destroyed 136 military targets in areas controlled by the militia.”
Almasirah TV, the satellite channel operated by the Houthi movement, reported multiple missile strikes hitting locations across the northwestern governorate of Saada, the group’s traditional northern stronghold.
The intensified aerial bombardment follows cross-border strikes aimed at transport infrastructure and municipal centers inside the kingdom. Saudi authorities reported three civilian fatalities from a strike targeting airport facilities late this week, prompting heightened vigilance around critical transport and oil installations across the southern and central provinces.
Yemeni ground forces backed by coalition airpower have simultaneously pressed forward along strategic transit corridors near the Red Sea coast. Ground commanders reported repelling militia counterattacks while securing fortified ridges overlooking key supply routes leading toward the Bab al-Mandab strait.
International maritime monitors note that the flare-up has heightened commercial shipping concerns along southern Red Sea sea lanes, where localized skirmishes frequently threaten shipping bottlenecks. Coalition commanders affirmed that defensive air screens and preemptive tracking of mobile launch vehicles will continue throughout the weekend.
