The Iran-backed Houthi rebel group fired a ballistic missile at Saudi Arabia after accusing the kingdom of orchestrating airstrikes at its airport — with the terror group also raising suspicion around a key Red Sea trade route.
A Saudi coalition spokesman confirmed that the kingdom’s air defenses intercepted a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis following airstrikes at the Sanaa International Airport earlier on Monday.
The Houthis described the attack in Sanaa as an act of “blatant aggression” that threatened to rip apart the years-long truce it has with Yemen’s Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government.
“This aggression will not go unanswered or unpunished,” Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said, vowing that Saudi Arabia would be the one to bear the consequences.
Tensions flared early Monday when an Iranian plane attempted to land at the Sanaa International Airport, with Yemen’s forces firing at the runway to try and prevent its arrival.
The plane, which was allegedly carrying a delegation that attended Khamenei’s funeral last week, was forced to land at the Houthi-controlled Hodeidah airport.
Yemen’s Saudi-backed government accused the Iranian flight of infiltrating the country’s airspace.
“At this moment, we say that our patience has run out,” Gen. Taher al- Aqili, Yemen’s defense minister, said in a statement.
“Accordingly, we will respond appropriately to this treacherous and brutal act, and we will confront and deal with the hostile aircraft violating Yemeni airspace and sovereignty by all available means,” he added.
The incident marks the most significant rise in escalation between the Houthis and Yemen’s government since a 2022 truce that ended seven years of violence that caused one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
As tensions flared on land, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) warned of suspicious activity off the coast of Yemen on Monday.
At least six small boats had approached a tanker sailing in the Gulf of Aden.
The ship was forced to fire warning shots as the boats continued to trail the vessel, according to the UKMTO.
The incident, which remains under investigation, has elevated fears that the Houthi’s could threaten the Bab al-Mandab Strait that connects the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
Similar to the Strait of Hormuz, the 20-mile wide Bab al-Mandab Strait serves as a global critical trade route, with $1 trillion worth of goods passing through the Red Sea each year.
The Houthi’s have repeatedly threatened the waterways in the past over the war in Gaza and Iran, and attacks sowed chaos on global shipping back in 2024.
Attacks along the strait would further risk shipments coming out of Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest exporter of oil, which has been redirecting its barrels through the Red Sea following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
