Yemen's long-running conflict has intensified again this month, with a Houthi missile and drone attack reaching into Saudi Arabia and the death toll from a renewed offensive in the country's west climbing past 500.
The Houthi movement, which controls large parts of northern Yemen and has fought Yemeni government forces and their partners for more than a decade, launched ballistic missiles and drones at several locations inside Saudi Arabia. The attack injured at least 73 people, including civilians, and caused fires that temporarily halted operations at some energy facilities before being brought under control.
Separately, officials tracking the offensive in western Yemen put the confirmed death toll at 500, made up of 278 Houthi fighters, 216 soldiers with the Yemeni Armed Forces, and 29 civilians. The figures illustrate how the fighting, which has waxed and waned since 2015, continues to carry a heavy human cost even as international attention has shifted toward other conflicts in the region.
Yemen has faced years of conflict alongside a severe humanitarian crisis, with millions of people relying on aid for food and basic services. Aid groups operating in the country have repeatedly said that renewed fighting makes it harder to reach communities in need, particularly in contested areas of the west and north.
Regional mediators, including Oman, have periodically tried to broker pauses in the fighting, and further attempts at a ceasefire or humanitarian corridor are possible if the current escalation continues.
Who are the Houthis?
The Houthi movement is an armed group that controls much of northern Yemen and has been engaged in conflict with the internationally recognized Yemeni government and its partners since 2015.