Yemen's Houthis Target Aden Airport with Missile Strikes Following Deadly Presidential Palace Attack

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis launched missile attacks targeting Aden International Airport late on Friday. This incident occurred just a day after they carried out a deadly attack on the presidential palace in the port city. Aden has served as the seat of Yemen's internationally recognized government since 2015, when the Houthis seized the capital city, Sanaa, initiating a civil war. The Houthis are currently engaged in conflict against the government and Saudi Arabia.

Yemeni Information Minister Moammar Eryani stated that two missiles landed near the airport's runway, approximately 500 meters from an aircraft that was preparing for takeoff. He confirmed that civilians on the plane were safe and characterized the attack as a "grave violation of international laws and norms." The Aden Security Department noted that this was the second attack on the airport in less than a week.

In a statement attributed to a military source, the Houthis claimed responsibility for an attack launched against the "Saudi forces’ command headquarters in the Badr camp in Aden province," as well as a weapons depot. The security department clarified that a Yemenia Airways flight bound for Cairo was preparing for departure when the missiles struck. This attack follows a deadly Houthi assault on Al Maashiq presidential palace, which resulted in five fatalities. It marked the first time the group had targeted the palace since the resumption of fighting in Yemen last month, following a four-year period of relative calm.

Marwan Ali Noman, a political adviser to Yemen's Foreign Minister Afrah Al Zouba, expressed to The National that the Houthis would not succeed in disrupting public life or undermining state authority, especially as the government advances its military and political campaign against them. "Aden will remain the centre of government operations despite the deadly Houthi attack on the city's presidential palace," he asserted.

Heavy fighting persists between government forces and the Houthis. The renewed conflict has heightened concerns about a further deterioration of the country's dire humanitarian crisis, with aid agencies warning of rapidly worsening conditions.

Yemen has become an additional front in the broader regional conflict that began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran in February. Yemeni government forces reported on Friday that their troops had advanced in Marib province, northeast of Sanaa. Military spokesman Majed Al Nazili announced that government forces, supported by air power, had achieved significant "territorial gains" in the eastern part of the province, securing "key positions." He also stated that over 430 Houthi fighters had been "neutralised" in the past 24 hours, with more than 100 of their vehicles and military assets destroyed or disabled.

Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition engaged in operations against the Houthis released aerial footage, dated October 16, depicting what they described as strikes on a Houthi weapons-smuggling operation in the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah. The nearly six-minute black-and-white video, which specifies the date and location at the beginning, shows apparent air strikes targeting lorries, small boats, and what appear to be storage facilities.