Seven Dead as Houthis Launch Fresh Missile and Drone Assault on al-Makha
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Dhivyanshu
- . August 10, 2026
- . Update: August 10, 2026 4:18 pm
Yemen’s Houthi rebels have launched a fresh wave of missile and drone attacks on the Red Sea port city of al-Makha, also known as Mocha, extending an assault on government-held areas along Yemen’s western coast. Houthis missile and drone assault, The latest attacks came on Sunday evening, less than 24 hours after an earlier barrage struck al-Makha and its commercial port.
Casualties From the Renewed Assault
The renewed strikes added to an already rising toll in the city. Yemen’s armed forces said on Monday that four military personnel and three civilians were killed in the latest assault, while 30 others were wounded, most of them civilians. Officials said most of the wounded had already been discharged after receiving treatment.
What the Attack Targeted
Government forces described a broad range of targets hit during the assault. The military said the attacks targeted civilian facilities and infrastructure, residents’ homes, electricity-generating stations, and other sites inside the city, as well as military positions. Yemen’s government condemned the strikes as targeting civilian infrastructure, employee residences and offices, and power generation stations in what it called a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law.
Sunday’s Earlier, Deadlier Barrage
The evening attack followed an even more lethal strike earlier the same day. An earlier wave of attacks on al-Makha on Sunday killed at least 11 people, including eight military personnel and three civilians, and wounded 32 others, according to the toll cited by AFP. Yemeni government forces said air defences intercepted six drones during that renewed assault, while two ballistic missiles fell into the sea without hitting their targets.
Houthis Claim Responsibility
The Houthis have publicly acknowledged carrying out the strikes, framing them as targeting military assets rather than civilians. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the operation targeted Saudi military concentrations and weapons depots in the Mukha area. Yemen’s armed forces countered that the group’s claims were a violation of international law, given the residential and civilian infrastructure hit in the strikes.
Air Defences in Action
Government forces said they were able to blunt part of the attack. Air defence forces stationed in al-Makha intercepted and shot down 11 Houthi drones involved in the attack, according to a statement from Yemen’s armed forces.
Part of a Wider Escalation
The al-Makha strikes are not an isolated incident but part of a broader intensification of Houthi attacks in recent days. Hours apart from the port attack, the Houthis also launched a drone strike hitting a Saudi Aramco refinery facility in Jazan, southwestern Saudi Arabia, triggering a fire that Saudi energy officials managed to extinguish without casualties. This wave follows consecutive deadly Houthi missile and drone strikes on government strongholds in Yemen’s Marib and Hadramout provinces earlier in the week, which collectively killed dozens of soldiers.
Strategic Stakes in al-Makha
The location of the fighting carries significant weight beyond the immediate casualties. Al-Mokha is a crucial seaport located just north of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a vital global maritime chokepoint linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. The offensive also comes amid heightened friction over an alleged Saudi naval blockade against the Houthis near the strait, and just two days after Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement.
With casualty figures still being confirmed and both sides trading accusations over the legitimacy of the targets struck, al-Makha’s residents face continued uncertainty. National Resistance Forces aligned with Yemen’s government have urged residents to remain indoors as the situation on the western coast remains volatile.
Summary – Houthis missile and drone assault
Yemen’s Houthis launched a fresh missile and drone assault on the Red Sea port city of al-Makha, killing seven people and wounding 30. The attack came less than 24 hours after an earlier barrage on the city killed at least 11 people.
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