Houthi attacks escalate in Saudi Arabia as Pakistan’s Sharif backs Riyadh, Makkah pact under spotlight

New Delhi: A prison in Yemen’s northern al-Jawf province has become the latest flashpoint in the country’s renewed tension, with the Houthi rebels blaming Saudi Arabia for an airstrike that they say killed seven people. The alleged attack came as clashes intensified between the Houthis and Yemen’s internationally recognized government, with the violence spreading across several key provinces.

The Houthis said the strike hit the central corrective facility in al-Hazm, the capital of al-Jawf province, killing seven people, including a child, and injuring at least seven others. Anees al-Asbahi, spokesperson for the Houthi-run health ministry, said a woman was among those wounded.

Houthi military spokesperson, Yahya Saree, accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out attacks in al-Jawf and providing weapons to forces fighting the Houthis. He warned that the group would respond to what he described as continued Saudi aggression against Yemen.

Saree also claimed that Houthi forces had shot down four Saudi reconnaissance drones during the previous 24 hours. He identified one as a CH-4 drone and said it was carrying out what he called a hostile mission over al-Jawf.

Government-backed forces have also launched counterattacks in Taiz and Hodeidah after a major Houthi offensive. The fighting has been linked to the struggle for control of territory around the Bab al-Mandeb strait, one of the region’s most important maritime routes.

Kuwait backs Saudi Arabia

The Pakistani prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, condemned the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, expressing solidarity with the kingdom and its leadership. In a post on X, Sharif said he condemned in the strongest terms the “cowardly attack” targeting civilian and energy facilities in Saudi Arabia, which left several people injured.

Sharif said such attacks threaten innocent lives as well as regional peace and security, while reaffirming Pakistan’s support for Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity. He also prayed for the swift recovery of those injured in the attacks.

As the fighting escalates, Kuwait has condemned Houthi attacks on civilian and economic targets in several Saudi cities. Its foreign ministry said the attacks had injured dozens of civilians, including women and children, and described them as a violation of Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty and international law.

Kuwait also criticized continued Houthi attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea, saying they threaten maritime navigation, energy supplies and international trade. It reaffirmed its support for Saudi Arabia and said the kingdom’s security was closely connected to the security of Kuwait and the wider Gulf Cooperation Council.

The developments also come soon after Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkiye signed the Makkah Defence Alliance. The pact provides that an armed attack against one of the three countries would be treated as an attack against all three, although the agreement does not automatically mean that the other members would enter every conflict involving a signatory.

For now, there is no indication that Pakistan or Turkiye is preparing to become directly involved in the Yemen fighting. However, the renewed attacks involving Saudi Arabia give the agreement greater regional significance as Riyadh faces a fresh security challenge along its southern flank.

Meanwhile, the UN special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, has urged the both countries to stop hostilities and exercise maximum restraint. He warned that the latest escalation could spiral into a full-scale war, threatening efforts to contain years of conflict, Anadolu Ajansi reported.