RIYADH, — Two Saudi military officers were killed when an AH-6i light attack and reconnaissance helicopter crashed in Najran province near the Yemen border, according to the Saudi-led coalition. The coalition attributed the crash to a technical malfunction as fighting with Houthi forces intensified in the region.
Coalition spokesperson Major General Turki Al-Malki said the helicopter belonged to Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of National Guard and crashed inside Saudi territory. Both crew members died.
Houthi media also reported the incident but did not initially claim responsibility. A day earlier, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed that the group had shot down a Saudi Apache helicopter near Najran while it was operating against Houthi positions. The coalition attributed the AH-6i crash to a technical problem, and available reports have not established whether the two accounts concern the same incident.
The coalition also reported intercepting and destroying drones over the Riyadh region and the Eastern Province, along with two ballistic missiles launched toward Khamis Mushait in southwestern Saudi Arabia. Najran has faced repeated Houthi attacks in recent weeks.
Houthi Attack on Aden Palace Kills Five
The helicopter crash followed a missile and drone attack on October 15 targeting the Al-Maashiq Palace compound in Aden, the temporary seat of Yemen’s internationally recognized, Saudi-backed government.
Yemen’s Health Minister, Qasim Mohammed Buhaibeh, said five people were killed and 16 injured. The casualties included security personnel and civilian employees working at the government complex. According to the supplied reports, the compound was struck by five ballistic missiles alongside drones.
Yemen’s Ministry of Information said Prime Minister Shaya Zindani and members of his cabinet were inside the compound but were unharmed. The Houthis said they had targeted a military operations center within the palace grounds. The Yemeni government described the strike as an attack on its headquarters and said it would continue its work and military operations against the Houthis.
Houthi Advances Around Taiz
In southwestern Yemen, Houthi forces from the Ansar Allah movement have surrounded Taiz, the country’s third-largest city, and cut the main road connecting it to Aden. Government sources and international reports cited in the supplied information indicate that tens of thousands of people have been displaced by the fighting.
Capturing Taiz could open a route toward Aden, where the internationally recognized government is based, and put additional pressure on government-held territory.
The Houthis have also expanded their control along Yemen’s Red Sea coast. The supplied reports say they seized the port of Mocha and nearby areas in September, including positions near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a key maritime passage connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.
The group controls large parts of Yemen, including areas containing much of the country’s population, and is seeking wider territorial control. Further inland advances could increase its control, although estimates that it could hold 50–60% of Yemen’s territory require independent verification.
The latest incidents underscore the continuing conflict between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government, with fighting affecting both the Saudi border region and key cities in southwestern Yemen.
——— End of Article ———
