The Saudi-led coalition accuses the Houthis of obtaining missile parts from regional states. Posted on October 15, 2026 October 15, 2026 Yemen’s Houthis attacked the vicinity of the al-Maashiq presidential palace in the port city of Aden with multiple missiles. Yemeni Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani said in a social media post on Thursday that the Houthis had attacked al-Maashiq’s presidential palace with five missiles. The officials are safe, but two of their bodyguards were killed in the attack. Columns of smoke could be seen rising from the vicinity of the palace. Al Jazeera correspondents reported earlier on Thursday that there were explosions near the palace. The palace is considered the headquarters and seat of power of the internationally recognized government, backed by Saudi Arabia. “This is an indication that escalation is going to intensify between both sides,” Mawry said, adding that fears are now growing within the country of “an all-out civil war” that could potentially draw in regional powers other than Saudi Arabia. The attack in Aden came as fighting between the Houthis, an armed group also known as Ansar Allah (Arabic for supporters of God), and Saudi-backed forces intensified in Taiz, which is effectively under siege by the Houthis. Controlling Taiz, Yemen’s third city and broader Taiz governorate in the country’s southwest, would ensure control over the critical Bab al-Mandeb Strait for both sides. Forces allied with the Yemeni government said they are repelling a Houthi attack on Dhubab airport. The pro-government National Shield Force said in a statement that, together with the Southern Giants Brigades, they are securing the airport in the coastal town of Dhubab in Taiz. Governorate. Buildings in the southwestern city of Taiz, Yemen, October 15, 2026. [Anees Mahyoub/Reuters]Aid agencies say the escalating violence in Taiz is pushing the health system to its limits. On Sunday, the Ministry of Public Health warned of a “humanitarian catastrophe” there. Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition says Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport has been the target of at least 20 Houthi attacks in the past 11 days and that dozens of other airports, oil facilities and ports have also been attacked. Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki, spokesman for the alliance, released images showing attacks on the main airport with passengers fleeing for safety, during a news conference in the Saudi capital. The coalition says Houthi attacks have killed 17 people and wounded more than 300. Al-Maliki also accused the Houthis of obtaining ballistic missiles from other countries in the region. Mohamad Elmasry, a professor at the Doha Institute of Graduate Studies, said the Saudi-led coalition’s press conference was intended to be a response “to some of the, perhaps, military and security problems there because this is perhaps affecting the perception of Saudi deterrence, the fact that the missiles are getting through,” he told Al Jazeera. Elmasry said the Houthis also have an image crisis, and the global community sees their actions as “reprehensible, particularly those directed at civil infrastructure.”
