Yemen · 08 September, 2026 · 3 min read
Houthis Strike Saudi Arabia, Injuring 73 Civilians and Igniting Fires at Energy Facilities
Houthis struck four Saudi cities with missiles and drones, injuring 73 civilians. Attacks ignited fires at Aramco energy facilities and other utilities in the southwest.
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7 of 8 outlets skipped it: pakistan's PM condemns attacks and affirms solidarity with Saudi leadership.
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Houthi strikes hit Saudi
Houthi attacks launched from Yemen struck Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, injuring 73 civilians and igniting fires at energy facilities and utilities in the kingdom’s southern region, according to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Saudi Energy Ministry.
“left 73 civilians injured, including women and children”
The attacks targeted civilian and economic facilities in Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jizan, and Najran, and the Saudi-led coalition said the strikes were a “dangerous escalation” and a “flagrant violation of its sovereignty,” with Turki al-Maliki warning that the Joint Forces Command would take “all necessary measures.”
In response, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the Houthis’ attacks on Saudi Arabia as a “cowardly attack,” and said Pakistan stands “firmly alongside the Saudi leadership and the brotherly Saudi people.”
The Houthis, through their military spokesperson Yahya Sarii, said the strikes targeted Aramco facilities in Aseer, Najran, and Jizan, and also hit an airbase in Khamis Mushait.
The escalation unfolded as the Yemen-based Coalition to Restore Legitimacy said fighting expanded in Yemen, with the Yemeni government announcing progress on the fronts of al-Jawf and al-Bayda amid UN warnings of a worsening humanitarian crisis with a fresh wave of displacement.
Condemnations and retaliation
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said the Houthi attacks that targeted civilian and economic targets in four Saudi cities resulted in 73 civilians being injured, and it asserted the Kingdom’s legitimate right to take whatever measures are necessary to defend its sovereignty and protect its civilians.
The coalition spokesperson Major General Turki al-Maliki said the attacks targeted civilian and economic sites in Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jazan and Najran, and he described them as a “serious escalation” while vowing retaliation.
In Riyadh, Al Jazeera’s correspondent Badr al-Rubaian reported that field teams were still working to contain fires, secure the sites, and assess damage, and he said the most prominent message in official statements was that dealing with the attacks “will not be limited to containment.”
The Houthis’ military spokesperson Yahya Saree accused the Saudi military of carrying out more than 120 air strikes on Yemeni provinces over the past three days, and said the Houthis responded with “dozens of ballistic missiles and drones.”
Regional reactions followed, with Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun condemning the attacks on Saudi cities including Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jazan, and Najran, and Jordan’s Foreign Ministry describing the strikes as a “flagrant breach of the Kingdom’s sovereignty.”
Yemen front widens
As the Saudi-Houthi exchange intensified, the Yemeni government announced a final decision to move militarily to “liberate the capital Sana’a from Houthi control and decisive action,” while also reporting control over the Yahtamah district in Jawf governorate.
“move militarily to “liberate the capital Sana’a from Houthi control”
Al Jazeera’s Yemen editor Ahmad al-Shulfi said the confrontations in Yemen were rapidly widening to include internal and external fronts, noting that the battle lines expanded to multiple fronts in a clear Houthi effort to divert government forces and the Coalition led by Saudi Arabia.
On the battlefield, the Yemen-based Coalition to Restore Legitimacy described Houthi attacks on Saudi territory as a “dangerous escalation,” while Yemeni government sources said clashes in Al-Bayda governorate left 23 Houthis dead and dozens injured and that the Yemeni army carried out 13 air strikes targeting Houthi reinforcements and gatherings.
The AP reported that the flare-up threatened to reignite Yemen’s civil war, and it said the World Health Organization estimated the fighting had killed at least 194 people and wounded over 880 others between Aug. 23 and Sep. 5.
The AP also said the fighting displaced more than 21,000 people, including 18,500 in Taiz and Hodeida, and it quoted Abdusattor Esoev saying, “Families are arriving with nothing: no shelter, no food, no way to know if it’s safe to go back,” as the humanitarian impact deepened.