Updated

Fighting between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government sharply escalated this week, with Houthi missile and drone attacks striking Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport and Abha airport, killing at least three to four Saudi nationals and a Saudia employee. Saudi Arabia and Yemen's internationally recognized government responded with a wide-ranging coalition offensive, claiming to have destroyed over 130 military targets and 'neutralised' more than 1,800-2,750 Houthi fighters, while Houthi media reported Saudi strikes on Sanaa's airport killed two people. The UN Security Council met on the crisis, with the US, EU, Turkey, Qatar, Kuwait and Pakistan condemning the Houthi attacks and demanding Iran halt support for the group, while a UN envoy warned Yemen has effectively returned to full-scale war. The unrest extended into the Red Sea and Gulf shipping lanes, with a tanker struck by multiple projectiles off Qatar and a vessel set ablaze by an unknown projectile off the UAE coast, prompting EU aviation safety warnings about Houthi threats deeper into Saudi territory. Yemeni government forces claimed advances on multiple fronts, including around the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait, underscoring fears of a wider regional conflagration.