The Iranian-backed Houthi militia said on Wednesday that Saudi forces had launched dozens of airstrikes in Yemen, as the country tips toward another full-blown war after weeks of mounting hostilities. Saudi officials have not commented publicly on the Houthis’ claim, which came a day after the kingdom vowed retaliation for a Houthi attack that injured 73 civilians in the south of the country. But in a statement on Wednesday, the Saudi-led military coalition fighting the Houthis accused the militants of launching fresh missile and drone attacks on Abha, Khamis Mushait and Jazan, three cities in southern Saudi Arabia.

The Houthis did not immediately comment. Fighting has raged between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government in recent days, threatening to restart a devastating civil war. The two sides have been at war since 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital city. Since then, Yemen has been effectively divided into two states, with the Houthis in control of large swaths of the north. A fragile cease-fire was reached in 2022.

As the broader conflict between the United States and Iran chokes off traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, the Houthis appear to have launched an offensive to wrest control over shipping routes to the Red Sea, igniting escalating ground battles. The militia has also attacked Saudi energy facilities and enforced a blockade of the kingdom’s shipping through the Red Sea, prompting Saudi reprisals. A Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said that Saudi warplanes on Wednesday carried out 54 airstrikes across five Yemeni regions that have become front lines, including Al-Bayda, Saada, Taiz, Marib, and Al-Jawf.

Mohammed al-Basha, a Yemen-focused political analyst based in Washington, said the airstrikes in recent days were some of the most significant waves of attacks since the 2022 truce, showing the conflict quickly sliding toward full-scale war. The Saudi foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, said during a visit to Moscow on Tuesday, "The kingdom will always support peace and diplomatic solutions, but it will not hesitate to defend itself."