SANAA, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group on Friday launched new missile attacks on the government-held Red Sea port city of Mocha in southwestern Taiz province, causing casualties amid an escalation in tensions across the war-torn country, pro-government media and local residents said.
The pro-government Aljoumhouriya TV reported that the Houthi group fired five missiles at Mocha port, causing casualties, though detailed toll was not available immediately.
Local residents told Xinhua that several powerful explosions rocked the city, apparently from ballistic missile strikes, as flames and thick smoke rose from the port and surrounding areas.
Wadah Dobish, spokesperson for the joint pro-government forces on Yemen's western coast, said on social media platform X that one of the missile attacks hit fishing boats near the port, setting several ablaze, with initial reports indicating civilian casualties.
Rescue and ambulance teams rushed to the area to evacuate the victims, but a fourth missile struck nearby, forcing them to suspend the operation, the spokesman said.
The Houthis did not immediately comment on the reported strikes.
Mocha lies close to the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a vital maritime chokepoint connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.
The Houthis have sharply intensified missile and drone attacks in recent weeks against government-held areas in Yemen and targets in neighboring Saudi Arabia, a key backer of the Yemeni government.
The group announced a maritime ban on Saudi shipping on July 20 and has since claimed attacks on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea as well as energy facilities inside the kingdom.
Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized much of northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in 2015 in support of the Yemeni government.
A UN-brokered truce that took effect in April 2022 expired six months later without a formal extension, but a fragile de facto ceasefire has largely held until the recent escalation. ■
