Houthis say Saudi strike killed 6 in Mokha, as G7 urges Iran-backed group to halt fire

Group of countries also calls on Iran to stop arming Houthis; UK, France pledge ‘defensive’ support to Saudi Arabia to secure energy supply; Trump speaks with Yemen’s leader

Saudi-led strikes on the strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha killed at least six people and wounded eight others, a news agency affiliated with the Houthis said on Tuesday, as international calls mounted for the Iran-backed group in Yemen to halt its fighting.

The Houthis have staged a lightning offensive in recent weeks to take over Yemen’s entire Red Sea coast, including Mokha, leaving the country’s Saudi-backed government scrambling to respond. The war in impoverished Yemen, which began in 2014 with the Houthi capture of the capital Sanaa, had been largely frozen since 2022 but resumed in July.

“Six civilians, including two children and a woman, were killed and eight others, including a child and a woman, were injured in Saudi-led coalition airstrikes on Mokha,” the Houthi-affiliated news agency Saba reported on Tuesday.

On Monday, the UK and France said they would provide defensive assistance to Saudi Arabia, which the Houthis have repeatedly struck during the renewed conflict. That same day, the foreign ministers of the G7 condemned the “unacceptable continued strikes” waged from Yemen against Saudi Arabia and urged the Iran-backed group to immediately hold its fire.

“We call on the Houthis to immediately cease all military actions, all threats and attacks against civilian shipping, and to return to the political process in good faith,” said the statement from leaders representing Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

They also called on Iran “to end its arming of and support for the Houthis,” alleging Tehran is in violation of past UN Security Council resolutions.

Supporters of Yemen’s Houthi rebels shout slogans during a rally in support of the group and to protest Saudi Arabia’s accusation that the Houthis targeted Islam’s holiest site, Mecca, in Sanaa, Yemen, September 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)

The statement came a day after the head of Yemen’s Saudi-backed governing body, Rashad al-Alimi, held a call with US President Donald Trump to request American support against the pro-Iranian fighters, a source in Alimi’s office told AFP, echoing calls from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Trump did not promise military support, the source said, adding that the call was intended as a show of solidarity with Yemen’s embattled government. On Sunday, Trump reportedly called off airstrikes against the Houthis at the last minute.

UK pledges support for Saudi ‘defensive’ missions

Other Western allies of Saudi Arabia are pledging assistance. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Monday that Britain has agreed to provide limited military support to Saudi Arabia to repel Houthi attacks.

UK officials say the agreement will start in the coming days, and involve one RAF Voyager refueling Saudi planes on “defensive” missions.

Burnham told reporters as he flew to the United Nations General Assembly in New York that he had agreed the Royal Air Force will provide air-to-air refueling of Saudi planes. The agreement is for a matter of weeks, but Burnham said it will be kept under review.

Burnham said he was “acting to secure the interests of Britain and the wider region, because of course Saudi Arabia has been experiencing attack, is looking at potential further disruption, and we need to keep those pathways [for oil] open.”

Britain’s Prime Minister Andy Burnham, right, speaks with French President Emmanuel Macron during a bilateral meeting at 10 Downing Street, in London, September 3, 2026. (Leon Neal/Pool Photo via AP)

Britain has condemned the Houthi attacks and said the UK will “work with partners to support regional stability, protect civilians and support humanitarian access.”

France offers to help secure Saudi energy infrastructure

France, meanwhile, is ready to work on “securing” Saudi energy infrastructure targeted by the Houthis, adopting a “strictly defensive approach,” a diplomatic source said Monday.

“France is ready to contribute to securing Saudi energy infrastructure in Yanbu and along the East-West Pipeline, within the framework of a strictly defensive approach,” the source said, emphasizing that “this in no way involves taking part in the conflict with the Houthis.”

The Houthis have carried out attacks against facilities belonging to the Saudi oil giant Aramco in the Red Sea port city of Yanbu. The East-West Pipeline — a crucial crude oil export route — has also been shut down following drone attacks launched from Iraq, according to Riyadh.