Dozens Killed as Houthi Missiles Hit Yemeni Government Training Camp, Authorities Say

At least 73 people were killed Monday when missiles struck a Yemeni government security forces training camp in Shabwa province, according to the provincial media office. The toll is still rising.

Government sources told Reuters that three ballistic missiles hit the camp while recruits were training. Shabwa Governor Awad al Wazir said more than 200 people were wounded, and 14 were missing, according to Reuters and The National.

Reuters said it verified video from Shabwa showing injured people and bodies on the ground.

How the toll rose
Early reports gave far lower figures. The National first reported at least 18 killed, citing sources. Reuters, in a report carried by GV Wire, later cited 53 dead and about 200 injured. Other outlets then reported 58 and 60 before the figure reached 73.

The numbers come from local authorities and have not been independently confirmed. With 14 people still missing, the final toll could be higher.

The camp
The National identified the site as the Al Alam camp, also called the Martyr Ahmed Al Sulaymani training centre, where recruits were attending a course. The wounded were taken to Authority Hospital in Ataq and Shabwa General Hospital, which were overwhelmed, the outlet reported. Residents were asked to donate blood.

Nasser Sheikh Bahaj, an injured recruit, told The National the attack came during a morning training session. He said reconnaissance aircraft had filmed the camp over the previous three nights. NordoVista could not verify that account, and the report did not say who operated the aircraft.

Houthi claims and government response
The Houthis acknowledged the attack, The National reported. They described the camp as a base for “Saudi enemy” forces managed by Saudi officers and said Saudi personnel were among the dead and wounded. That claim is unverified.

The Houthis also said they attacked Saudi targets Monday, including an Aramco site in Yanbu, the Shaybah oilfield and airports in Riyadh and Abha. Saudi Arabia has not confirmed those claims, according to The National.

Rashad al Alimi, head of the Presidential Leadership Council, condemned what he called “cowardly terrorist attacks” and ordered authorities to respond firmly, the outlet reported.

Shabwa authorities appealed to the council, the government and the Saudi led coalition for air defence and early warning systems. The coalition did not immediately comment on the camp attack. It said separately that it had struck fishing boats suspected of smuggling weapons to the Houthis.

Fighting widens
Government forces launched a campaign this month to retake Houthi held areas and have advanced near the Bab el Mandeb Strait, Reuters reported. The Houthis, who are aligned with Iran, are besieging Taiz, the last major anti Houthi city in the southern highlands.

The Houthis also recently struck Aden airport and the presidential palace in the interim capital, killing five security personnel, according to The National. Reuters described Yemen as a new front in the wider U.S. Israeli war on Iran.

Shabwa is home to the Balhaf liquefied natural gas facility. Aid agencies warn that conditions in one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises are deteriorating rapidly.