Saudi airstrike hits Taiz market, kills seven civilians, injures dozens

Saudi Arabia’s air force struck a crowded market in the southern Yemeni city of Taiz on Thursday, killing at least seven civilians and injuring around 40 others, according to local authorities and eyewitnesses. The raid, carried out by coalition aircraft that have been operating over Yemen since 2015, targeted what the coalition described as a “militant gathering,” but the site was a commercial hub where residents were buying food and household goods.

The attack comes amid a protracted conflict that began when the Saudi‑backed coalition intervened in Yemen’s civil war in March 2015 to restore the internationally recognised government of President Abd‑Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The coalition, led by Riyadh and supported by the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and other Gulf states, has conducted thousands of airstrikes against the Houthi movement, a Zaidi Shia rebel group that seized control of the capital, Sana’a, and much of the north in 2014. The Houthis, who claim to defend Yemen’s sovereignty against foreign interference, have responded with missile and drone attacks on Saudi territory, including oil facilities and urban centers.

Saudi Arabia, the kingdom that dominates the Arabian Peninsula and commands the world’s second‑largest proven oil reserves, has framed its involvement in Yemen as a security imperative. Riyadh argues that the Houthi insurgency, which it accuses of receiving Iranian support, threatens the stability of the Red Sea shipping lanes that are vital for global energy trade. The coalition’s air campaign, however, has drawn persistent criticism from humanitarian organisations for the high civilian toll and the destruction of essential infrastructure such as hospitals, schools and markets. The United Nations has repeatedly warned that the conflict has pushed Yemen to the brink of famine, with more than 20 million people in need of assistance.

The Houthi leadership, in turn, maintains that their attacks are a legitimate response to what they describe as an illegal occupation of Yemeni territory. They have used the war’s asymmetry to launch ballistic missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles into Saudi Arabia, aiming to pressure the coalition into a political settlement. While the Houthis have occasionally signalled openness to cease‑fire talks, they insist that any negotiation must address the removal of the coalition forces and the restoration of a unified Yemeni government.

International actors have struggled to broker a lasting peace. The United Nations, the United States and several European nations have called for an immediate cease‑fire and the resumption of diplomatic dialogue, but progress has been hampered by deep mistrust, competing regional interests and the fragmented nature of Yemen’s political landscape. The latest market strike underscores the difficulty of distinguishing combatants from civilians in a densely populated urban environment, a problem that has plagued the coalition’s aerial strategy throughout the war.

Although the incident does not involve Taiwan directly, its repercussions reverberate across the broader Middle East and global supply chains. The Red Sea, bordering Yemen’s western coast, is a critical conduit for oil and container traffic linking Europe, Asia and the Americas. Escalations in Yemen heighten the risk of disruptions to these shipping routes, which can affect energy prices and the timely delivery of goods worldwide. Moreover, the conflict highlights the challenges of conducting high‑intensity air campaigns in civilian‑dense areas, raising concerns for militaries that rely on precision strikes to limit collateral damage. For regional stability, the continuation of such attacks threatens not only humanitarian outcomes in Yemen but also the security of maritime commerce that underpins the global economy.