At least six explosions took place Thursday near the palace used by Yemen’s internationally recognized government in the port city of Aden, witnesses said.
An official told The Associated Press that at least two people were killed and Iran-backed Houthi rebels based in northern Yemen quickly claimed responsibility. Government military sources in Yemen told Agence-France Presse (AFP) that at least four people were killed and ten injured.
An AFP journalist saw smoke rising and residents in the town reported hearing explosions during the attack, the first on the compound since Yemen’s civil war resumed in July.
A government minister said on condition of anonymity that Yemeni Prime Minister Shaya al-Zindani was present at the time but “suffered no harm.”
It was a rare attack on the palace area as fighting intensified between rebels and the Saudi-led coalition on the latest front of the Iran war. The explosions caused panic among residents who fled the scene.
At least two people were killed and six injured, said the official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press. The government said the Houthis attacked with missiles and drones, the Aden-based Saba news agency reported.
A security official told the AP that at least two explosions took place on top of the hill near Al-Maashiq Palace, and two more near the security gate.
AFP also reported that a Yemeni government minister said on condition of anonymity on Thursday that a Houthi missile attack on the presidential palace in Aden had hit a command center of the Saudi-led coalition. The official added that the command center was hit by three missiles and the headquarters of coalition forces at the presidential complex by two missiles, adding that there were Yemeni and Saudi casualties, without providing a precise toll.
There was no immediate confirmation of reports that the prime minister was in the presidential palace at the time of the Houthi attack. Many Yemeni government leaders live in exile and those in Aden are safe, a government official told the AP.
The Houthis said they attacked a military operations headquarters with the “Saudi enemy,” as part of their strategy to attack Saudi targets that included a series of attacks on airports and oil infrastructure inside the kingdom.
The escalation has complicated efforts to end the war in Iran and further shaken global markets as Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s top oil exporters, faces repeated attacks. Regional aviation is also affected, with rebels warning airlines against using Saudi airspace for attacks. Thousands of flights across the kingdom have been disrupted.
Earlier Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis said it had intercepted a cruise missile over Medina province. Flightradar24, a tracking platform, reported that dozens of flights were canceled or delayed at Jeddah airport.
The coalition statement did not attribute responsibility for the attack. Houthi military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree denied the rebels carried out the operation. The group previously pledged not to attack airports in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia also said it destroyed a drone over the country’s Eastern Province, a major oil-producing region, and intercepted a drone in Khamis Mushait, near a major military air base.
Earlier this week, Saudi Arabia said the headquarters of oil giant Saudi Aramco had been hit by Houthi attacks and reported damage to the building.
In Yemen, fighting has reignited a devastating civil war after four years of relative calm. Of concern is the city of Taiz, Yemen’s third largest city, under siege by the Houthis, where residents lacked basic necessities.
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