Saudi-led Coalition vs Houthis
Multi-party war. Yemen's civil war began when the Houthis (Ansar Allah) seized Sanaa in September 2014 and ousted the internationally recognised government. On 26 March 2015 a Saudi-led coalition (with the UAE as its main partner, backed by the US and UK) intervened at that government's request. UN Panel of Experts reports found weapons with "characteristics similar" to Iranian-produced systems reaching the Houthis in breach of the UN arms embargo; Iran has denied arming them. A UN-brokered truce of April 2022 formally lapsed on 2 October 2022, but "relative calm" largely held for four years; a December 2023 UN roadmap (nationwide ceasefire, salaries, reopened roads) was never implemented. In December 2025 the anti-Houthi camp split: Saudi Arabia bombed a UAE weapons shipment to the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) in Mukalla, the UAE withdrew, and Saudi-backed forces retook the south by January 2026. In March 2026 the Houthis joined the Iran war. On 3 September 2026 they launched a general offensive on the Red Sea coast, took Mokha and the Bab el-Mandeb islands, and resumed missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabia; Saudi Arabia resumed its air campaign.
Yemen- 377,000 deaths by end-2021, direct and indirect - nearly 60% from hunger, disease and lack of safe water (UNDP estimate)
- At least 7,825 civilians killed (2,138 children), Mar 2015 - Jun 2020 (OHCHR verified)
- 25,054 coalition air raids, Mar 2015 - Apr 2022 (Yemen Data Project)
- 2016 child casualties: 683 attributed to the coalition, 414 to the Houthis (UN children and armed conflict report)
- 2026 escalation: at least 728 killed or wounded, 23 Aug - 8 Sept (WHO); at least 125,000 displaced in September (OCHA)
- At least 46 civilians killed and more than 130 injured, Aug - 9 Oct 2026 (UN figures, via Al Jazeera, 9 Oct 2026)
- More than 200,000 displaced in recent weeks, mostly from Taiz governorate (IOM, via Al Jazeera, 11 Oct 2026)
Saudi Arabia- 73 civilians wounded by Houthi attacks on 8 Sept 2026 alone (Saudi authorities)
- 3 killed and 36 wounded in Houthi attacks on Abha and Riyadh airports in the week of 5 Oct 2026 (Saudi authorities, via Al Jazeera, 11 Oct 2026)
- 12 killed and 309 wounded by a Houthi missile on King Khalid International Airport, Riyadh, 10 Oct 2026 - the dead included nationals of Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, the US, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Sudan and Egypt (General Authority of Civil Aviation, via UN News and Al Jazeera, 11 Oct 2026)
- 1 killed and 11 injured in a second strike on the same airport, 11 Oct 2026 (General Authority of Civil Aviation, via NBC News)
- 73 UN staff detained by the Houthis (UN Secretary-General via UN News, as of 25 Mar 2026)
- 72 UN staff still detained by the Houthis (Special Envoy Grundberg to the Security Council, 9 Oct 2026)
- 1 WFP staff member died in Houthi custody in Feb 2025; a Save the Children staff member died in detention in Oct 2023 (HRW, Amnesty and CIHRS, 7 June 2026)
- At least 41 aid workers killed in major attacks in Yemen, 2015 - 2025 (So Noted count of Aid Worker Security Database incident records)
- 45 journalists killed since 2015 (Yemeni Journalists Syndicate via Anadolu, as of May 2024)
- Resolution 2216 (Apr 2015, Russia abstaining) imposed an arms embargo on Houthi leaders and demanded they withdraw from Sanaa, without mentioning coalition airstrikes.
- Resolution 2722 (Jan 2024, 11-0-4) condemned Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping.
- Emergency Council meetings were held on 10 and 15 Sept 2026.
- A 19 Sept 2026 press statement condemned Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.
- The 19 Sept statement did not mention Saudi strikes in Yemen.
- At the 81st session's general debate (22-26 Sept 2026) Yemen asked states to stop arms and technology reaching the Houthis; no Assembly action followed during the high-level week.
- On 9 Oct 2026 the Special Envoy told the Council Yemen had "slid back into full-scale war"; the meeting produced no outcome document. A Houthi missile hit Riyadh airport the next day.
- None.
- In 2020 the UN Group of Eminent Experts asked the Security Council to refer Yemen to the ICC.
- The Human Rights Council shut the Group down in October 2021.
- As of September 2026 the Security Council had not referred Yemen to the ICC.
- The one real consequence came from the UK Court of Appeal, which ruled in June 2019 that UK arms licensing for Saudi Arabia was unlawful.
- UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia resumed 13 months later.
- US President Biden cut off support for "offensive operations" in February 2021.
- Biden lifted the ban in August 2024.
- In June 2026 the UN said the Houthis were detaining 73 UN staff, one of whom had died in custody.
- The Saudi-UAE coalition broke up in December 2025, with Saudi Arabia bombing a UAE weapons shipment.
- Four years of relative calm ended in September 2026.
- By mid-September the Houthis, who have held Sanaa since 2014, had pushed down the Red Sea coast to Mokha and the Bab el-Mandeb islands.
- On 19 September a Houthi missile was fired at Riyadh.
- On 22 September 2026, as the UNGA general debate opened, the G7 and the EU High Representative issued a joint statement on Bab al-Mandab; on 24 September Yemen's foreign ministry welcomed the week's international statements and asked that they be turned into concrete support.
- On 4 October 2026 Saudi-backed government forces launched the "Dawn of Yemen" offensive to retake Mocha and Mayyun island; on 5 October Türkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia agreed to activate "deterrence measures" under their August mutual defence pact (Al Jazeera).
- Airstrikes hit Sanaa from early October, the first major bombing of the capital since the 2023 truce; a strike in Sa'wan killed a child and wounded seven, and two workers were killed at Sanaa airport (Al Jazeera, 11 Oct 2026).
- On 10 October 2026 a Houthi missile hit King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, killing 12 and wounding 309 (GACA) - the deadliest attack on Saudi soil in more than a decade. The airport was hit again on 11 October and closed. Asked whether the US would join Saudi strikes, Trump said "We may. We're gonna look at it."
- On 11 October 2026 Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Pakistan and Türkiye jointly held the Houthis "fully accountable" and backed Saudi "legitimate measures"; the coalition spokesman promised to "respond decisively". The Houthis announced further operations against the airport the same day.
In 2020 the UN's own investigators said "third states have helped perpetuate the conflict" and named them. In October 2021 the Human Rights Council voted 21-18 (7 abstentions) to shut them down, the only independent body investigating every party.
Biden announced "This war has to end" in 2021 and restored offensive arms sales in 2024 because "The Saudis have met their end of the deal."
In December 2023 the parties committed to a UN roadmap for a nationwide ceasefire. It was never implemented. In September 2026 the UN envoy told the Security Council the war was back. Condemnations resolved: zero.
At the 81st General Assembly the Council's press statement was reissued as a G7 statement, four foreign ministers affirmed Saudi Arabia's right to self-defence, and Yemen's foreign ministry asked that all of it be turned into concrete support. Two weeks later the UN envoy told the Council Yemen was back in "full-scale war". The next day a Houthi missile killed 12 people at Riyadh airport; the Secretary-General, four foreign ministries, the Arab League, the EU, Russia and Israel condemned it within 24 hours, and the Houthis hit the airport again the following morning. Condemnations resolved: still zero.
- Yemen war will have killed 377,000 by year's end: UN - France 24 / AFP, 2021-11-23
- Yemen Data Project - Yemen Data Project
- Fresh war crimes fears highlighted in new Yemen report - UN News, 2020-09-09
- Security Council Demands End to Yemen Violence, Adopting Resolution 2216 (2015), with Russian Federation Abstaining - UN Meetings Coverage, 2015-04-14
- UN panel finds further evidence of Iran link to Yemen missiles - The National, 2018-07-31
- The UN Exposes Houthi Reliance on Iranian Weapons - The Washington Institute
- UN envoy welcomes 'significant step' towards ceasefire in Yemen - UN News
- Saudi Arabia bombs Yemen port city of Mukalla over weapons shipment from UAE for separatists - PBS NewsHour / AP, 2025-12-30
- Yemen's Saudi-backed government retakes southern areas from STC: What next? - Al Jazeera, 2026-01-12
- The Red Sea: Vote on a Draft Resolution - Security Council Report
- Saudi-Houthi fighting in Yemen escalates: What happened, and what's next? - Al Jazeera, 2026-09-08
- Houthis seize more key islands in Red Sea, launch attacks into Saudi Arabia - The Times of Israel / AP, 2026-09-14
- 2026 in Yemen - Wikipedia
- Saudi Arabia Is Left to Face the Houthis Alone - The Soufan Center, 2026-09-21
- UN envoy urges Yemen parties to extend truce - The National, 2022-10-13
- UN chief calls for immediate release of 118 detained UN staff - UN News, 2026-03-25
- Yemen: Houthis Should Free UN, Civil Society Staff - Human Rights Watch, 2026-06-07
- Security incident data: Yemen - Aid Worker Security Database (Humanitarian Outcomes)
- 45 journalists killed in Yemen since fighting erupted in 2015: Journalist group - Anadolu Agency, 2024-05-04
- Special Envoy for Yemen's remarks to the Security Council [as delivered] - UN DPPA, 2026-10-09
- UN envoy warns Yemen has returned to 'full-scale war', urges dialogue - Al Jazeera, 2026-10-09
- Yemen fighting expands as Houthis attack Saudi airport again: What to know - Al Jazeera, 2026-10-11
- Fear and uncertainty for civilians as Yemen's capital comes under attack - Al Jazeera, 2026-10-11
- 'These attacks must cease immediately': Guterres condemns deadly Houthi strike on Riyadh airport - UN News, 2026-10-11
- Saudi airport attack: Trump says U.S. could join fight against Houthis - NBC News, 2026-10-11