Houthis hit Aden presidential palace, killing five and wounding 16, Yemen government says

Houthi forces have fired five ballistic missiles at the presidential palace complex in Aden, the seat of Yemen's internationally recognised government. The target was the al-Mashik palace, also known as al-Maashiq. The government later said five people were killed and 16 wounded. Yemen's information minister said the prime minister and other ministers were safe. The Houthis said the palace was being used as an operations centre commanded by Saudi officers.

Earlier reports from the scene gave a lower toll. A correspondent in Aden heard the explosions and saw smoke rising from the mountains around the city. Officials said two security officers were killed and about six people were injured. The strike was described as precise and targeted at the palace complex. It was not the first Houthi attack on the internationally recognised government, but it formed part of a steady escalation.

Yemen's civil war has widened since a truce that had largely held since 2022 broke down in July. The Houthis accused the Yemeni government and Saudi Arabia of hitting Sana'a airport before a flight carrying an Iranian delegation was due. In September, Houthi forces captured the Bab al-Mandeb Strait in a lightning offensive. That waterway is a crucial route for global trade and oil shipments, and its importance has grown because disruption to the Strait of Hormuz has affected oil supplies.

The Houthis have also attacked Saudi Arabia. Saudi-led coalition figures say 17 people were killed and 333 injured at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh between 7 and 11 October. The coalition said it intercepted a missile in the Medina region, home to one of Islam's holiest cities. The Houthis denied carrying out that attack and have previously said they would spare Mecca and Medina. They have vowed more strikes on what they call Saudi military targets.

In Taiz, the Houthis said they allowed the International Committee of the Red Cross to enter the besieged city to assess the humanitarian situation. Heavy clashes continue there.

Regional tensions with Iran are rising at the same time. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Iranians that the country faces its most intense blockade since the 1979 Islamic revolution. He accused Washington of trying to make life difficult for ordinary Iranians in order to provoke public anger and unrest. CNN reported that the United States is considering using its biggest non-nuclear bomb, the Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb known as the mother of all bombs, against Iran if President Donald Trump decides to renew combat. Possible targets include Iranian energy infrastructure and nuclear sites. Iranian military figures and hardliners say Iran is ready for any scenario. One former commander claimed on state television that Iran has the father of all bombs and would use it against the US or anyone who attacks.

The Houthis are widely believed to be armed and trained by Iran. Members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps are also believed to be on the ground in Yemen, though this has not been independently confirmed. Saudi Arabia accuses Iran of escalating the conflict by supporting, training and arming the Houthis. Saudi Arabia asked the Houthis to meet in Muscat, but the Houthis refused attempts to negotiate an end to the conflict. After a US-Houthi truce in 2025, Houthi attacks on ships stopped. The group now says it is targeting only Saudi ships, but the renewed threat has worried international markets and raised concerns about oil supplies and prices. Yemen's civil war is spreading beyond its borders, and the Houthis are presenting themselves as a regional player that cannot be ignored.