SANAA, Oct. 11 — United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg on Sunday condemned continuing Houthi attacks on civilian infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, warning that the escalation threatens regional security and further complicates peace efforts in Yemen.
In a statement posted on social media platform X, Grundberg cited Saturday’s attack on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh which killed 12 people and injured over 300, according to Saudi authorities.
The UN envoy said the strike followed attacks earlier this week on airports in Riyadh and the southwestern Saudi city of Abha that also killed and injured civilians.
“These attacks represent a grave escalation,” Grundberg said, adding that such actions “pose a serious threat to regional security, perpetuate cycles of violence and complicate even more peace efforts for Yemen.”
Grundberg renewed his call on the Houthis to cease the attacks and stressed the need to respect international humanitarian law, including the prohibition on directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects.
His remarks came as the military confrontation intensified on both sides of the Yemen-Saudi border. A military source told Xinhua on Sunday that airstrikes against Houthi-held areas have grown more intense, with heavy strikes targeting areas in southwestern Taiz province and elsewhere across Yemen.
Meanwhile, fighting has intensified in southwestern Yemen, particularly near the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait, where Yemeni government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition have been battling Houthi forces.
Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and much of northern Yemen. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government, which is now based in the southern port city of Aden.
(Namibia Daily News/Xinhua)
