Houthis Step Up Attacks in Hodeidah amid UN Silence

UN vehicles at the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Yemen. (Reuters)
UN vehicles at the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Yemen. (Reuters)
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Houthis Step Up Attacks in Hodeidah amid UN Silence

UN vehicles at the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Yemen. (Reuters)
UN vehicles at the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Yemen. (Reuters)

The UN observer mission based in Yemen’s western coastal Hodeidah governorate has remained silent over the growing attacks by Houthi militias that are threatening to collapse a fragile UN-sponsored truce agreement that was signed back in 2018.

The militias, backed by Iran, launched missile strikes on Tuesday that targeted an industrial complex and a number of civilian neighborhoods in Hodeidah, war monitors of pro-government joint Yemeni forces reported.

Within a window of eight hours, the militias violated the Stockholm Agreement 86 times, they added, confirming that the Iran-aligned group is waging a hostile military escalation in Hodeidah.

The assaults resulted in substantial material damage and managed to spread fear and panic among locals.

This is not the first time the militants target the “Ikhwan Thabit” industrial and commercial complex.

War monitors also reported Houthis using medium and heavy weapons, mortar shells and drones to target residential areas and farms in the Hays and al-Duraihimi districts, located in Hodeidah’s south.

Military sources have previously confirmed to Asharq Al-Awsat that Houthis are seeking to expand the range of combat lines and make advances in Hodeidah’s southern and eastern fronts.

The Houthis have stepped up their attacks in the Hays, al-Hok, Tahita and al-Duraihimi districts.

On Monday, Houthis used katyusha rockets to target al-Mandhar residential neighborhood in al-Hok.

Several houses in al-Mandhar were either hit or badly damaged by the attack. At least five houses were totally destroyed by the indiscriminate shelling.

Houthi constant bombardment of populated areas has caused panic throughout Hodeidah and forced hundreds of families to leave their homes.

The UN Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement (UNMHA), led by General Abhijit Guha, failed to condemn the recent aggressions.

Instead, the observer mission keeps to issuing statements denouncing the escalation and calling for restraint.



Israel Ready to Negotiate Permanent Gaza Ceasefire during 60-day Truce, Netanyahu Says

09 July 2025, US, Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with the press at the US Capitol in Washington. Photo: Douglas Christian/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
09 July 2025, US, Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with the press at the US Capitol in Washington. Photo: Douglas Christian/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
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Israel Ready to Negotiate Permanent Gaza Ceasefire during 60-day Truce, Netanyahu Says

09 July 2025, US, Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with the press at the US Capitol in Washington. Photo: Douglas Christian/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
09 July 2025, US, Washington: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking with the press at the US Capitol in Washington. Photo: Douglas Christian/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will likely have a ceasefire agreement with Hamas to release more Israeli hostages held by the Palestinian group. 

Netanyahu said 50 hostages were still being held captive by Hamas. Of that figure, he said, only 20 are believed to be alive. 

"I want to take them all out. We now have a deal that supposedly will get half of the living and half of the dead out," Netanyahu said in an interview on Newsmax show "The Record with Greta Van Susteren" that aired on Thursday. 

"And so we'll have 10 living left and about 12 deceased hostages, but I'll get them out, too. I hope we can complete it in a few days." 

On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Israel's retaliation has killed more than 57,000 Palestinians, Gaza's health ministry says, and reduced much of Gaza to rubble. 

The two sides have had two ceasefires - one in November 2023 and another in January 2025- since the fighting started. 

Netanyahu said Israel and Hamas will likely have a 60-day ceasefire, which the two sides could use to try to end the conflict. 

Hamas said on Wednesday there were several sticking points in the ongoing ceasefire talks including the flow of aid, withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, and "genuine guarantees for a permanent ceasefire." 

Netanyahu's interview with Newsmax comes as he wraps his third visit to Washington since President Donald Trump took office in January. 

Speaking of Trump, the Israeli leader said his country has never had "such a friend, such a support of Israel, the Jewish state in the White House." 

Last month, the US joined Israel in striking Iran, a move that Trump has said "obliterated" three of Iran's nuclear sites. 

When asked about a damage assessment, Netanyahu said, "Within months, they could have produced atomic bombs."