Madar (International) - At least 53 people were killed and more than 200 injured on Monday, October 19, 2026, in a Houthi missile strike on a camp training recruits for the internal security forces in Yemen's central province of Shabwa, according to a preliminary toll from the province's media office reported by the BBC.
A spokesman for the Saudi-backed Yemeni armed forces said the Houthis fired three ballistic missiles at al-Alam camp near Ataq city, which was being used to train recruits to the security forces and police. Shabwa's media office said the missiles struck the Martyr Ahmed al-Sulaimani Training Centre, where recruits from several provinces were undergoing training.
Shabwa's deputy governor, Fahad al-Khalifi, told AFP that hospitals in the province were overwhelmed and the most seriously wounded had been transferred to Hadramout and Aden. Presidential Leadership Council head Rashad al-Alimi condemned what he called a "criminal attack" and promised a "firm response", while Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani called it a war crime, saying the training centre was not a military target.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said the missiles targeted a gathering of "Saudi enemy" forces at al-Alam camp, which he said was run by Saudi officers. There was no immediate comment from Saudi authorities. Houthi-run media separately reported that a Saudi air strike on a home in the Sahar district of Saada province on Sunday killed at least 10 people.
The Shabwa attack is one of the deadliest reported since the start of the recent escalation, after pro-government forces launched an offensive in early October to retake territory in western Yemen. The government's health ministry said last week that at least 1,282 people had been killed across Yemen since August 6, while at least 19 people have been killed in Saudi Arabia in Houthi attacks on its airports since the beginning of October.
