Houthi supporters rally to show support for the movement as fighting intensifies across several Yemeni fronts, in Sanaa, Yemen, on Oct. 9, 2026. Mohammed al-Mahdi/Reuters
A missile strike by the Iran-backed Houthi terrorist group on Yemen’s Shabwa province on Monday killed more than 70 people and wounded more than 200, local authorities said.
The strike targeted security force recruits undergoing training at the Martyr Ahmed Al-Sulaimani Training Center on the outskirts of Ataq, according to Yemen’s state-run SABA news agency.
Shabwa is an energy-rich governorate in south-central Yemen on the Gulf of Aden. It is home to the Balhaf liquefied natural gas facility, Yemen’s largest industrial investment.
The attack on the training camp comes amid an escalation in fighting between the Houthis and the internationally recognized Yemeni government, which has intensified alongside the wider U.S.–Israeli conflict with Iran.
Yemeni Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani condemned the strike, describing it as a war crime and saying the facility was a training center, rather than a military target linked to active combat operations.
He also said the Houthis’ ballistic missile capabilities posed a continuing threat and called for enhanced protection of military and security facilities in areas controlled by the internationally recognized government.
The Houthis acknowledged carrying out a series of attacks against Saudi targets.
Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree said on Monday that Houthi forces targeted a Saudi naval task force camp and conducted five other operations over the previous two days.
Saree said the Houthis targeted Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu, the Shaybah oil field, King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Abha International Airport, military radar installations, Khamis Mushait Air Base, and a radar installation in Bir Askar.
Escalation
The Houthis, who control large parts of Yemen, have been fighting the Saudi-backed government since 2014. The conflict has intensified during the U.S.–Iran war, with the group increasing attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and the strategically important Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
The attack on Riyadh’s international airport earlier this month killed at least 13 people, wounded more than 300 others, and forced the airport to close temporarily.
An aerial view of Ataq city, the capital of the province of Shabwa, east of the Red Sea port of Aden, on Jan. 18, 2022. Saleh Al-Obeidi/AFP via Getty Images
In September, the Houthis carried out missile and drone attacks against the Saudi cities of Abha, Khamis Mushait, and Jazan. The terrorist group also targeted Saudi Arabia’s oil infrastructure and an airbase in Khamis Mushait last month.
The Houthis captured Perim Island and the port city of Mokha while advancing near Taiz, Hodeidah, and other strategically important locations. Yemeni government forces and the Saudi-led coalition later launched operations to regain those areas.
Earlier this month, Yemeni officials said that allied forces had retaken the towns of Bab, Dhubab, and Hadeid near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
More than 530 people had been killed or injured since the latest escalation began on Sept. 3 through Oct. 18, according to the Houthi-run Ministry of Health and Environment.
The ministry said on Oct. 18 that 141 people had been killed and 395 wounded, adding that women and children accounted for the largest share of the casualties.
U.S. President Donald Trump accused the Houthis on Oct. 13 of deliberately attempting to drive up oil prices ahead of the U.S. midterm elections and warned that he would not forget the group’s attacks on Saudi Arabia.
He previously said that the United States could potentially join future Saudi attacks against the Houthis.
