More than 50 security personnel were killed and 200 others wounded following a Houthi missile strike on a training camp in the central Yemeni province of Shabwa, according to local authorities. The attack involved three ballistic missiles that struck the Martyr Ahmed al-Sulaimani Training Centre near the city of Ataq, a site currently used to prepare new recruits for the country's internal security forces and police.
The media office for Shabwa province issued a statement indicating that the recruits at the camp had arrived from various regions across Yemen for training. Preliminary assessments currently place the death toll at 53, with a significantly higher number of casualties requiring urgent medical attention. Deputy Governor of Shabwa, Fahad al-Khalifi, noted that provincial hospitals have been completely overwhelmed by the influx of wounded individuals. Due to the severity of the situation, the most critically injured patients have been transferred to medical facilities in Hadramout and Aden, where the Yemeni government is based.
Rashad al-Alimi, the head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, publicly denounced the incident, labeling it a "criminal attack" and pledging a "firm response" from government forces. Meanwhile, Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani categorized the strike as a war crime, asserting that the training centre for internal security forces did not constitute a legitimate military target. Mr. al-Eryani further accused the Houthi movement of seeking to fabricate a media victory to mask ongoing territorial setbacks across multiple combat fronts.
The Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Sarea, acknowledged the operation, stating that the missiles were aimed at concentrations of "Saudi enemy" forces. He alleged that the al-Alam camp was being operated by Saudi officers. There was no immediate official response from Saudi Arabian authorities regarding these claims.
This escalation occurs against the backdrop of an intensified civil war that has seen renewed conflict in recent months. In early October, pro-government forces initiated a major offensive aimed at reclaiming territory held by the Houthis, with air support provided by a Saudi-led coalition. While government forces have managed to regain some positions on the Red Sea coast, including areas overlooking the vital Bab al-Mandab Strait, heavy fighting persists in Marib, al-Jawf, and around the besieged city of Taiz.
The conflict in Yemen, which began in 2014 when the Houthis ousted the government from the capital city of Sanaa, deepened significantly in 2015 with the intervention of the Saudi-led coalition. An informal ceasefire that had held for four years largely disintegrated in July. Since then, the Houthis have escalated their tactical approach, frequently launching drone and missile strikes against airports, energy infrastructure, and military installations within neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
Data regarding the humanitarian toll of the conflict remains stark. Government health ministries reported that at least 1,282 people were killed in the conflict between early August and mid-October. Simultaneously, the Houthi-run health ministry claimed that 141 people died in Saudi-led air strikes over the preceding seven weeks. The strike in Shabwa stands as one of the deadliest single incidents reported since the latest escalation in the Yemeni civil war began.
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