Coalition: ‘We Have Carried Out Operations to Target Houthi Leaders’

Colonel Turki al-Malki. Reuters
Colonel Turki al-Malki. Reuters
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Coalition: ‘We Have Carried Out Operations to Target Houthi Leaders’

Colonel Turki al-Malki. Reuters
Colonel Turki al-Malki. Reuters

The leadership of the coalition forces in support of legitimacy in Yemen stressed targeting senior Houthi leaders during the past few days.

It said that it will reveal the details of these operations after confirming the information that it is currently gathering and said that Houthi militias are using "Sam-7" missiles.

The coalition’s leadership considered that the peace opportunity with the Iranian Houthi militias is still available if they abandon the coup project and agree on a political solution based on the three references, which are the Gulf initiative and its executive mechanism, the outputs of the comprehensive Yemeni national dialogue and Security Council resolution 2216.

It warned the militias from not bowing to the international will as it leads to the continuation of operations carried by coalition forces until it returns legitimacy to all the Yemeni territories.

Coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki told a news conference that what happened lately, including killing former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, was as a turning point in the Yemeni conflict.

He noted that it revealed the true face of the criminal terrorist group, and the conflict has become open between the people and this group.

The Iranian Houthi militias have two options, either peace or war, Malki said, explaining that peace will take place only with the implementation of the political solution based on the three references or else war will continue.

Speaking at a news conference, Malki said the legitimate forces have knocked out a large number of military vehicles and arms depots for the Houthi militias. Moreover, they have seized weapons provided by Iran to the Houthis.

Maliki also revealed aerial photos showing a militiaman carrying a SAM-7 missile, who was targeted by Apache plane, the same plane that also targeted Houthi militia border posts.

He added that the Apache planes also destroyed military vehicles belonging to Houthis, as well as weapon depots and Houthi checkpoints.

He also said that the areas where Houthi ballistic missiles are being kept have been located and destroyed.

The coalition and Yemeni army are specifically focusing on eliminating Houthi bases near the Saudi Arabian border, he added.

Maliki also stressed the coalition’s humanitarian aid efforts through airdrops of aid in several parts of Yemen and the work of human rights organizations in Sana’a amid threats by Houthis.

The Arab Coalition has also distributed leaflets along with the Yemeni army to help those seeking safety, he said.



Gaza Rescuers Say Israeli Fire Kills 8 Near Aid Centers, 4 Others

19 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Palestinians gather along the Coastal Road in the Al-Sudaniyya area of northern Gaza as they wait for humanitarian aid expected to arrive through the Zikim crossing on 19 June 2025. (dpa)
19 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Palestinians gather along the Coastal Road in the Al-Sudaniyya area of northern Gaza as they wait for humanitarian aid expected to arrive through the Zikim crossing on 19 June 2025. (dpa)
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Gaza Rescuers Say Israeli Fire Kills 8 Near Aid Centers, 4 Others

19 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Palestinians gather along the Coastal Road in the Al-Sudaniyya area of northern Gaza as they wait for humanitarian aid expected to arrive through the Zikim crossing on 19 June 2025. (dpa)
19 June 2025, Palestinian Territories, Gaza: Palestinians gather along the Coastal Road in the Al-Sudaniyya area of northern Gaza as they wait for humanitarian aid expected to arrive through the Zikim crossing on 19 June 2025. (dpa)

Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli fire killed at least 12 people on Saturday, including eight who had gathered near aid distribution sites in the Palestinian territory suffering severe food shortages.

Civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that three people were killed by gunfire from Israeli forces while waiting to collect aid in the southern Gaza Strip.

In a separate incident, Bassal said five people were killed in a central area known as the Netzarim corridor, where thousands of Palestinians have gathered daily in the hope of receiving food rations.

The Israeli army told AFP it was "looking into" both incidents, which according to the civil defense agency occurred near distribution centers run by the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation.

Its operations began at the end of May when Israel eased a total aid blockade that lasted more than two months but have been marred by chaotic scenes and neutrality concerns.

UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the foundation over concerns it was designed to cater to Israeli military objectives.

The health ministry in the Hamas-run territory said on Saturday that 450 people had been killed and 3,466 others injured while seeking aid in near-daily incidents since late May.

The Israeli blockade imposed in early March amid an impasse in truce negotiations had produced famine-like conditions across Gaza, according to rights groups.

Israel's military has pressed its operations across Gaza more than 20 months since an unprecedented Hamas attack triggered the devastating war, and even as attention has shifted to the war with Iran since June 13.

Bassal told AFP that three people were killed on Saturday in an Israeli air strike on Gaza City in the north, and one more in another strike on the southern city of Khan Younis.

Israeli forces also demolished more than 10 houses in Gaza City "by detonating them with explosives", he added.

Israeli restrictions on media in the Gaza Strip and difficulties in accessing some areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by rescuers and authorities.

Earlier this week, the UN's World Health Organization warned that Gaza's health system was at a "breaking point", pleading for fuel to be allowed into the territory to keep its remaining hospitals running.

The Hamas attack in October 2023 that sparked the war resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

Israel's retaliatory military campaign has killed at least 55,908 people, also mostly civilians, according to the Gaza health ministry. The UN considers these figures reliable.