Houthis warn Saudi Arabia of wider war after tit-for-tat airport strikes

Saudi warplanes hit Sanaa airport and the Houthis answered with strikes on Abha airport. The exchange has endangered the 2022 truce and raised fears of a wider regional escalation.

In Short

• No casualties were reported after the cross-border attacks on both airports
• An Iranian plane carrying Houthi delegates was diverted and landed in Hodeida
• Abdul Malik al-Houthi threatened Riyadh airport and Saudi oil facilities next

The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have said they are ready to step up their conflict with Saudi Arabia after both sides carried out strikes on each other’s airports. The exchange marks the most serious confrontation since a truce was reached in 2022.

Saudi warplanes struck Sanaa International Airport on Sunday, and the Houthis responded on Monday by launching missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia’s Abha International Airport. No casualties were reported in either strike.

Tensions had risen earlier this month after the Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of trying to stop the return of an Iranian plane carrying a Houthi delegation to Tehran for the funeral of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. After the strike on Sanaa airport, the plane was diverted and landed safely in Hodeida. Saudi officials did not respond to a request for comment on the airstrikes in Yemen.

Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said the group’s response to the strike on Sanaa airport was "modest" and warned that the "real equation would be Sanaa airport for Riyadh airport. The equation is airports for airports, ports for ports, and siege for siege." He also threatened oil facilities in Saudi Arabia. He accused Saudi Arabia of failing to stick to de-escalation in Yemen after the 2022 truce.

"If the Saudi enemy moves toward a full-scale escalation, we will move toward a full-scale escalation," he said in a televised address. He said Saudi Arabia had tightened its air, land and sea blockade of Yemen and was ignoring the humanitarian needs of Yemenis. A Saudi-led coalition imposed an air and sea blockade on Yemen in 2015 as part of its war against the Houthis and in support of the internationally recognised government. The same year, the United Nations set up a mechanism to inspect and verify that vessels heading to Yemeni ports were not carrying weapons. The blockade has, however, led to severe restrictions on the movement of commercial goods and humanitarian aid into the country, which has faced one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

Al-Houthi also said the US, Israel and the UK had all failed in their direct confrontations with the Yemenis. "But there is a possibility of renewed confrontations," he said. "It doesn't mean that everything has ended." During the Israel-Hamas war, the Houthis attacked more than 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones between November 2023 and January 2025, sinking two ships, killing four sailors and also firing projectiles at Israel. The attacks disrupted shipping through the Red Sea corridor, through which USD 1 trillion worth of goods moves each year. The US and Israel responded with an air campaign across Houthi-held areas in Yemen until a deal was reached between the Americans and the Houthis in 2025. The latest exchange has also raised fears that the Houthis could enter the US-Iran war in support of Tehran.

In sum, the latest airport strikes have sharply raised tensions between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia, with the rebel leadership warning of wider escalation while the wider regional conflict continues to cast a shadow over Yemen.

With PTI Inputs

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