Children Among Dead as Saudi-Houthi War Widens Again

Three children, aged eight and 10, died when strikes hit houses in al-Ar village in Yemen’s Dhamar province, the Houthis’ health ministry said. More than a dozen people suffered wounds. The ministry blamed Saudi Arabia, which didn’t immediately comment. The children were among 124 people the Houthis say have died in their territories since fighting resumed in September.

Those figures come from one side of the war and haven’t been independently verified. They arrive alongside a second set of casualties in Riyadh, where an attack on the airport last week killed 13 people.

Civilian Toll

The Houthi-run news agency reported more deaths overnight on Saturday. Saudi warplanes, it said, struck “civilian homes” in Taiz governorate, killing nine people and wounding 16, while others remained trapped under rubble. Earlier overnight strikes in Dhamar killed three children and wounded 17 others, the agency said. It claimed the strikes used “cluster bombs, which are banned internationally.” Houthi-affiliated media put the overnight toll at no fewer than 12 dead, including three children. Saudi Arabia hasn’t answered the allegations.

The Houthis, for their part, have repeatedly attacked Saudi targets since Yemen’s conflict flared back to life in July after a years-long hiatus. Their targets have included oil installations, energy facilities, tankers and transit hubs. On Friday, authorities said, two missiles landed within the perimeter of the airport in Aden, the interim capital of Yemen’s Saudi-backed government. The Houthis claimed responsibility, saying they targeted “the Saudi forces’ command headquarters in the Badr camp in Aden province” and a weapons depot.

Widening Circle

Saudi Arabia said Saturday that it intercepted and destroyed four drones over Riyadh, the Eastern Province and the South. Turki al-Malki, spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition, announced the interceptions on X. Egypt, a coalition member, is now signalling it could take a more direct role.

At a graduation ceremony at the Egyptian military academy, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Egypt wasn’t looking for a role in regional conflicts. But he called it “inconceivable” for Cairo to stand by while Saudi Arabia was “harmed or its security and stability threatened.” He said Egypt would “carry out any measure to protect you or defend you,” on the directives of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Any deployment would require parliamentary approval, and al-Sisi said he hoped lawmakers would convene in emergency session “if it is requested of us.” He chose his words carefully: “I’m not talking about fighting anyone or attacking anyone. We are speaking only about defence.”

Shipping Under Fire

Violence isn’t confined to Yemen and Saudi soil. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported that the captain of an LNG tanker, 140 nautical miles southeast of Yemen’s Al Mukalla, said a skiff carrying seven people approached and fired two shots. The tanker’s armed security team returned two warning shots, and the skiff changed course. In a separate incident, an “unknown projectile” hit a tanker 68 nautical miles off Jubail on Saudi Arabia’s Gulf coast, forcing its crew to evacuate. “All crew are reported safe,” the agency said.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said an oil tanker carrying more than two million barrels of crude caught fire after striking a naval mine in the Strait of Hormuz. The Guards said the supertanker was passing illegally, “in violation of regulations.” Tehran seized control over Hormuz after the war began in late February, choking a strait that normally carries about one-fifth of global oil consumption.

Diplomatic Signals

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Baghdad, said Tehran supports a political process to resolve the Saudi-Houthi conflict. “We support an inclusive and comprehensive political process as the only practical and sustainable way to resolve the issue,” he said. The base account reported no parallel talks.

Elsewhere in the region, Saudi Arabia executed five Saudi nationals convicted of “terrorism-related offences,” the interior ministry said. At the IMF and World Bank meetings in Bangkok, Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the fund would support Iraq “very firmly” with a requested loan programme and was in “intense” discussions with Lebanon.

Why This Matters: Each new strike narrows the space for the political process Araghchi says he wants. Children are dying on the Yemeni side, while 13 people were killed at Riyadh’s airport; civilians are paying on both sides of the border. Egypt’s readiness to deploy, even defensively, raises the prospect of a wider coalition role. If confirmed, the disputed claims about cluster munitions would add an international-law dimension neither side can ignore. Fighting at sea compounds the danger, as crews evacuate and shipping lanes face risk. Without a ceasefire, the civilian toll is likely to keep rising.