20 air strikes hit Yemen as Saudi-Houthi tensions escalate sharply

The military spokesperson for Yemen's internationally recognised government said on Friday that warplanes carried out 20 strikes over the past three hours targeting Houthi movements, personnel, vehicles and military equipment in Taiz province.

The strikes come amid the most serious escalation between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-aligned Houthis since a UN-brokered truce largely halted cross-border attacks in 2022.

Unchallenged occupation of southwestern Yemen's Taiz would give the Houthis full control over the country's north, a tighter grip on the Red Sea coast and easier access to the south and the southern port city of Aden, seat of the government.

The renewed conflict has already displaced tens of thousands of people and could reshape control in Yemen, with implications for Red Sea shipping lanes and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

Saudi Arabia said on Thursday the Houthis attacked a power distribution station in Medina that supplies electricity to the Prophet's Mosque.

A Houthi military source, quoted by the Houthi-run Saba news agency, denied the claim and said it was intended to cover up what he described as Saudi Arabia's failure to substantiate an earlier accusation that the Houthis had targeted the Muslim holy city of Mecca.

Saudi Arabia said two weeks ago it had intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone south of Mecca before it entered restricted airspace over the city. The Houthis denied targeting Mecca or any other Islamic holy site.

Fighting was widespread across Taiz and authorities had ordered the closure of all roads leading into the province, designating them military operational areas, six military sources told Reuters.

Around 19 roads were affected by the closures, including the main route running from southern Sanaa to Taiz, the sources said.- Ends