Airstrikes on Yemen's capital, drone hits vessel in Strait of Hormuz, and other Mideast developments

By The Mon, October 12, 2026 at 9:42 AM UTC

0

Yemen's Houthi rebels say the country's capital Sanaa was hit during overnight airstrikes

Airstrikes targeted two districts in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels reported Monday, blaming Saudi Arabia for the airstrikes that occurred around midnight. Saudi Arabia did not immediately respond to the claim.

Meanwhile, India's Foreign Ministry said two Indian nationals were missing after a drone struck a commercial tanker around the Strait of Hormuz.

Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Monday. Read our full coverage here.

1 killed as airstrikes target Yemen's capital

A spokesman for Yemen's Houthi-run Health Ministry said Monday that airstrikes on the capital Sanaa killed one person and wounded 12 others.

Ministry spokesman Anees al-Asbahi said a strike on a salt factory in Sanaa's Hamadan district killed a man and wounded eight people. A separate strike on a house wounded a woman and three children, he said.

The Iranian-backed rebels' media center blamed Saudi Arabia for the strikes, which came as the Houthis continued to fire missiles and drones toward the kingdom’s airports.

There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia.

Closure of Saudi capital's airport extended

Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation didn't say Monday when King Khalid Airport in the capital of Riyadh will resume operations.

Houthi rebels have attacked the airport multiple times in recent days, killing at least 14 people and wounding at least 320 others.

Iran says ready to mediate end of war between Houthis and Saudi Arabia

Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Monday repeated the country's readiness to help settle the conflict between Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia through diplomatic means.

Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Iran was deeply concerned about the situation in the Arabian Peninsula and has announced its readiness to mediate talks between the two sides “many times.”

Baghaei said the war only serves Israeli interests and that Iran doesn't accept the continuation of conflict between two Islamic nations.

He said Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, and his Saudi counterpart discussed developments on a phone call Sunday.

Businesses in Saudi capital tell employees to work from home

Businesses in Riyadh's financial hub have told employees to work remotely after the Houthis increased attacks on the kingdom.

That’s according to multiple employees whose firms have offices at the King Abdullah Financial District. They spoke Monday on condition of anonymity for their safety.

The district is home to major financial institutions including the Saudi sovereign wealth fund and an Aramco office, the stock exchange and global firms like Goldman Sachs.

Authorities in Riyadh have also asked schools to switch to online classes this week following the deadly strikes on King Khalid International Airport over the weekend.

Advertisement

— By Samy Magdy in Cairo

2 Indian sailors missing after drone hits tanker

India's Foreign Ministry said Monday two Indian seafarers are missing after a drone struck the MT Petro Dolphin in the Strait of Hormuz area. The commercial tanker had 11 Indian sailors on board when it was hit Sunday, the ministry said.

A second vessel, the Marshall Islands-flagged MT Valthera, was struck by an unknown projectile, sparking a fire on board, but all 11 Indian sailors on the tanker were safe, the ministry said.

The ministry said that repeated strikes on commercial shipping in the region were “deeply concerning and risk further aggravating an already volatile situation.”

UAE official calls for joint action against attacks from Iran and its proxies

An Emirati diplomat on Monday called for “joint Gulf action” to defend Gulf countries against attacks by Iran and its allied groups.

Anwar Gargash, a diplomatic adviser to the rulers of the United Arab Emirates, said Iran and its allies wrongly assessed that Gulf Arab countries were “the weakest link” in the U.S. and Israel's war against Iran.

Tehran and its allies have repeatedly attacked Arab countries on the opposite side of the Persian Gulf.

Gargash posted on social media that “we are all targeted and that our security is indivisible,” adding that attacks on Saudi Arabia undermine "the security of the UAE and all Gulf states.”

Iran hangs man it says was part of a militant group

Iran on Monday hanged a man convicted on charges of belonging to the Jaish al-Adl militant group and helping support attacks on security forces, official Mizan news agency reported.

Mizan, affiliated with Iran's judiciary, identified the man as Omar Dorostaran, saying he provided logistical support to armed teams, including arranging safe houses, moving members and supplying weapons and ammunition.

The judiciary accused Dorostaran of supporting attacks on police and Revolutionary Guard facilities in Rask, as well as attacks on military sites in the southeastern port city of Chabahar in April 2024. In one attack on a police station in Rask, 11 police officers and soldiers were killed.

Jaish al-Adl, or the Army of Justice, is a Sunni militant group that emerged in 2012 and has repeatedly targeted Iranian security forces in southeastern Iran.

Former US top diplomat top diplomat says ‘Iranian regime’ must be ‘crushed’

Former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday Iran-backed Houthi rebels’ deadly strikes on Saudi Arabia were a troubling development that underscored the U.S. has not yet achieved its objectives in the war against Iran.

Speaking at a conference in Abu Dhabi focused on the postwar future of the Middle East, Pompeo said that "we collectively have not yet achieved deterrence.”

Pompeo, who served as secretary of State and CIA director during U.S. President Donald Trump’s first term, said: "You have to crush the Iranian regime, period, full stop. There’s no solution short of that.”

___

This report will be throughout the day as new developments emerge.

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Breaking”