The latest
A Houthi attack on southern Saudi Arabia wounded 11 civilians on Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition said, as Riyadh warned that coordinated strikes against civilian and vital facilities could be imminent. Speaking early Friday, coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Maliki said those injured in Najran were seven Saudis, one Yemeni, two Egyptians and one Pakistani, including a four-year-old child who suffered second-degree burns. The Houthis and Iran did not immediately comment on the coalition’s account.
Details
- Iraqi intelligence: A Saudi official told +ontime that an Iraqi security agency provided advance intelligence on movements by armed factions in the Samawah desert near the Saudi border. The official said Riyadh-Baghdad security cooperation foiled a planned missile and drone attack on vital Saudi facilities. +ontime could not independently verify the account.
- Coordinated threat: A senior Saudi official separately told Reuters that intelligence gathered by Saudi Arabia, the United States and other regional countries indicated the Houthis and Iraqi militias supervised by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps could soon attack energy infrastructure, ports and airports. The official spoke on condition of anonymity.
- Response warning: The official speaking to +ontime did not rule out drone launches during the night and said Saudi forces were prepared to strike selected targets inside Iraq occupied by groups operating under IRGC command. He warned that any response would be severe and stronger than the previous action.
- July strikes: Saudi Arabia said it conducted strikes with U.S. Central Command on July 29 against Iran-backed groups in Iraq after blaming them for drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities. Reports said PMF members and four Iranian advisers were killed, but no independently verified toll was provided. Iraqi militias pledged to respond.
- Yemen escalation: The Houthis said they launched drones and ballistic missiles against Yemeni government forces in Marib and Hadramout after detecting what they called a Saudi military mobilisation. Reuters reported more than 30 government troops killed, while The New York Times cited a coalition statement putting the toll at least 17. The Yemeni defence ministry promised retaliation.
Background
The Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen in 2015 after the Houthis seized Sanaa. A fragile truce began in 2022, but renewed airstrikes, cross-border attacks and a declared Houthi blockade of Saudi oil shipping in the Red Sea have increased the risk of wider conflict.
What’s next
Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are due to sign a joint defence agreement in the kingdom on Friday, according to two Reuters sources. Any disclosed commitments, along with further launches from Yemen or Iraq, will indicate the immediate course of the escalation.
