EU condemns Houthi escalation and calls for aid access to Taiz

The European Union has called on Yemen’s Houthis to end all military action immediately, condemning the group’s escalation in Yemen and attacks on Saudi Arabia.

In a statement issued on 2 November on the EU’s behalf, foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas cited attacks on Aden’s Al-Maashiq palace, the siege of Taiz and military action along Yemen’s west coast. The EU also called on all actors, including Iran, to end military support for the Houthis.

The EU urged the Houthis to open a humanitarian corridor in Taiz and allow aid to reach people in need. It estimated that the city was sheltering between 800,000 and 950,000 civilians, including displaced people. Across Yemen, it said, more than 22 million people needed assistance.

Yemeni government officials had appealed for help to protect civilians and reopen roads into Taiz on 28 October, as the Houthis tightened their siege, the Associated Press reported.

In Aden earlier in October, witnesses reported at least six explosions near the palace used by Yemen’s internationally recognised government. An official told AP that at least two people had been killed and six wounded. The Houthis claimed responsibility, saying they had attacked a military operations headquarters linked to Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia leads a coalition fighting the Houthis and backs Yemen’s government. Britain has announced plans for defensive air patrols over Saudi Arabia against Houthi missile and drone attacks. On 28 October, a Houthi health official said Saudi-led air strikes had killed 14 people at a market in northern Yemen, AP reported.

The EU expressed solidarity with Yemen’s government and Saudi Arabia and said it would increase support for the government while backing UN-led peace efforts. It said it had reinforced emergency humanitarian aid by €25 million, bringing its total for 2026 to €110 million.