\n<\/p>\n
Saudi Arabia warned Tuesday it will react \u201cfirmly\u201d to Yemen\u2019s Houthis, after a series of attacks carried out by the pro-Iranian rebels using ballistic missiles and drones wounded 13 civilians in the country\u2019s south.<\/strong><\/p>\n The Houthis have been engaged in renewed fighting with Saudi-backed government forces since Yemen\u2019s civil war reignited in July, when the group declared a maritime blockade on Riyadh and began targeting its ships in the Red Sea.<\/p>\n The group seized control of Yemen\u2019s Red Sea coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait last week, which has become vital as the wider US-Iran war chokes the Strait of Hormuz, in a significant blow to Yemeni government forces.<\/p>\n It has also targeted the oil infrastructure of Saudi Arabia, the world\u2019s leading crude exporter, pushing oil prices above the $100 threshold.<\/p>\n A Houthi strike in western Yemen on Monday killed eight soldiers from government forces, according to two military sources.<\/p>\n The Houthis claimed a new \u201clarge-scale\u201d attack using \u201cdozens of ballistic missiles and drones\u201d against the King Khalid airbase in Khamis Mushait, in southern Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n A Khamis Mushait resident told AFP he heard \u201cintense blasts\u201d which left fires burning for a \u201clong time\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cHonestly, we couldn\u2019t sleep at all.\u201d<\/p>\n The Riyadh-led coalition confirmed Tuesday there had been missile and drone attacks the previous day on Khamis Mushait, Abha and Taif, reporting 13 wounded.<\/p>\n Riyadh responded with more than 50 strikes, as it had the day before, according to the Houthis.<\/p>\n The coalition said it would deal with the attacks \u201cfirmly to protect the sovereignty of the Kingdom\u201d and would take \u201call necessary operational measures to deter this\u2026 hostile and extremist approach\u201d.<\/p>\n Hazem al-Assad from the Houthis\u2019 politburo said the \u201cYemeni response will continue and escalate as long as they (Saudi Arabia) persist in their aggression against our people\u201d.<\/p>\n In the early hours of Tuesday, Saudi civil defence issued air-raid alerts in six regions, before lifting them.<\/p>\n The renewed fighting in Yemen comes as the wider regional war remains at a stalemate. But US President Donald Trump on Monday said he was open to holding talks with Iran.<\/p>\n \u201cThe failing Nation of Iran wants to make a deal, quickly and badly. I will determine whether or not the U.S.A. will choose to engage \u2014 The concept of which we are open to,\u201d Trump said on his Truth Social network.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s top security chief Mohsen Rezaei said on X that \u201cthere will be no negotiations until Iran\u2019s conditions are met. That is all there is to it\u201d.<\/p>\n A proposed meeting between Gulf states and Iran over the future of Hormuz was postponed on Monday, with Tehran accusing Riyadh of using Yemen as a \u201cpretext\u201d to delay the talks.<\/p>\n Tehran has long supported the Houthis, a member of its anti-Israel \u201caxis of resistance\u201d, including with weapons and technology, but analysts dispute the extent to which Iran is behind the renewed fighting.<\/p>\n\u2013 Wider regional war \u2013<\/strong><\/h2>\n