Yemen's War Explodes: 135,000 Displaced, 200+ Fighters Killed in 24 Hours as Airstrikes Hit Sana'a

Yemen's long-running war has entered a dangerous new phase, with heavy airstrikes and ground battles erupting across multiple fronts at the same time [1]. The renewed clashes mark a sharp escalation in a conflict that has lasted for years, and fighting is now reported in more than one region, signaling that the war is widening rather than slowing [1].

Heavy airstrikes struck two cities held by the Houthi group, hitting Sanaa, Yemen's capital, and the port city of Mocha [2]. The Houthis control both cities. There was no immediate word on casualties or who carried out the strikes, though a Saudi-led coalition has repeatedly bombed Houthi-held areas in the past [2]. Yemen has been at war since 2014, when the Houthis seized Sanaa and pushed the government out, a conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and left millions facing hunger [2].

Houthi media reported that Saudi-backed government forces launched airstrikes on a Hamdan cement factory in Sana'a on Tuesday, part of an ongoing exchange of strikes between the two sides [3].

Yemen's military said it had "neutralized" more than 200 Houthi fighters in the past 24 hours, reporting 753 operations during that period. It also said 78 vehicles and weapons were destroyed or damaged [4].

The human cost is mounting sharply. More than 135,000 people have been displaced in Yemen's Taiz province in the past two months, a government minister said. The government also reported that 79 civilians were killed and 206 wounded during the same period, and nearly 53,000 of those displaced are children [5]. Hundreds of displaced families from Taiz and Lahj governorates are now living in camps in Aden, facing difficult conditions and a continuing need for humanitarian assistance, following a major Houthi offensive that began in September [6].

The conflict has also drawn in regional powers. The Houthi movement claimed responsibility for attacks on a Saudi oil refinery and the defense ministry on Tuesday, marking a serious escalation in the conflict between the Iran-aligned group and Saudi Arabia [7]. Earlier that day, a Houthi official said the Egyptian parliament's decision to authorize defensive military support for Saudi Arabia amounted to a declaration of war [7]. Egypt's parliament approved that military support on Sunday, moving the country closer to the regional conflict as Houthi attacks intensify [8].