Yemenupdated 2h ago2 min read
Houthis Strike Aden Airport Again, Targeting Saudi-Backed Command at Badr Camp
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Two missiles struck Aden International Airport, landing about 500 metres from a departing aircraft. Houthis targeted Saudi forces' command headquarters at Badr camp and depots in Aden.
5 outlets told this the same way.
Aden Airport Hit Again
Houthi fighters struck Aden, Yemen’s interim capital, for a second consecutive day, and two projectiles landed at Aden Airport that night, according to Aden security officials and an air traffic controller. Aden security officials said the targeted area was where military units allied with the Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces are stationed, and a Houthi military source stated, "We targeted the Saudi military command headquarters and weapons depot at the Badr camp in Aden."
Yemen’s internationally recognised government said the Houthis fired two missiles that landed near the runway at Aden International Airport on Friday, with Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani saying the impact point was 500 metres, or 1,640 feet, from an aircraft preparing to take off. Al-Eryani said all passengers and crew were safe, and he thanked "divine providence" for averting what he described as a potential "horrific humanitarian catastrophe."
Claims, Denials, and Numbers
Iran denied accusations that it had encouraged Houthi attacks, and Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said, "Yemen's armed forces act according to their own interests and assessments" while rejecting the Saudi allegation. Baqaei added that "such claims are not credible to those familiar with relations between Iran and its friends," and he said Iran did not consider further escalation to be in any party’s interests.
The Aden Capital Security Department confirmed that the rockets landed inside the airport complex, and Türkiye Today said preliminary information indicated no casualties. Türkiye Today also reported that an AFP journalist heard two loud explosions near the airport but could not confirm what had been hit, while the Houthis claimed the attack targeted the Saudi forces’ command headquarters at the Badr camp in Aden province and a weapons depot.
War Context and Stakes
The latest attack in Aden came a day after the Houthis carried out a deadly attack targeting the presidential palace in the port city, which has served as the de facto capital of Yemen's internationally recognized government since 2015. Yemen’s government said the Houthis launched missiles at the airport amid continued heavy fighting in Yemen’s reignited civil war between the Saudi-backed government and the Iran-aligned Houthis, and it said Yemeni forces had advanced in Marib province northeast of Sanaa.
Military spokesman Majed al-Nazili said Yemeni government forces, with air support, had made significant "territorial gains" in the eastern part of the province, securing "key positions." Al-Nazili also said Yemeni forces had "neutralised" more than 430 Houthi fighters in 24 hours, while destroying or disabling more than 100 of their vehicles and military assets, as the war’s battlefronts included Taiz where the Houthis encircled the city by cutting its main road south to Aden.