Yemen Condemns Iranian Strikes on Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan Amid Gulf Tensions

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Yemen’s internationally recognised government has strongly condemned the missile and drone attacks that Iran launched against Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan during the escalation that gripped the Gulf in 2026. In a statement, Yemen’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates described the strikes as a dangerous escalation, a breach of its neighbours’ sovereignty and a violation of international law, and it expressed full solidarity with the three states. The government cast the security and stability of its Gulf partners as inseparable from its own, stressing the need for regional cooperation to confront what it presented as shared threats.

The attacks that prompted the condemnation formed part of a wider confrontation involving Iran, the United States and Israel. According to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Tehran fired ballistic missiles and drones at United States military installations in the region, including the Ali al-Salem air base in Kuwait, which hosts American forces. Iran framed the strikes as retaliation for earlier military action against it, part of a cycle of attacks and counter-attacks that has repeatedly threatened to pull the region into a broader war.

The physical damage from the strikes appears to have been limited. Kuwait, which hosts a major US base, said its air defences intercepted incoming drones and missiles, although accounts of the toll varied and some reports described casualties caused by falling debris near the country’s international airport. Bahrain said one strike had damaged a residential building but reported no fatalities. The relatively contained impact did little to ease alarm across the Gulf, where governments warned that a single miscalculation could tip an already fragile situation into open conflict.

The episode unfolded against the backdrop of a strained interim ceasefire tied to tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which a large share of the world’s seaborne oil passes. As the truce wavered, US and Iranian forces exchanged strikes, and Tehran warned that it might abandon negotiations aimed at ending the fighting if Washington continued its attacks. For the Gulf states, the proximity of the confrontation to critical energy infrastructure heightened the sense of exposure and lent urgency to their calls for restraint.

For Yemen’s leadership, the condemnation carried a logic rooted in years of conflict at home. The government, led by the Presidential Leadership Council and based in Aden, has fought a long war against the Houthi movement, which Tehran has backed politically and militarily. That rivalry has left successive Yemeni administrations deeply wary of Iranian influence, and it helps explain why the leadership moved quickly to align itself with Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan rather than remain silent.

In condemning the strikes, the government also sought to reinforce its standing as a partner within the broader Arab and Gulf order. Bahrain and Kuwait have long voiced concern about what they describe as Iranian interference and support for armed groups near their borders, and both have invested heavily in military and cybersecurity defences. Yemen’s statement echoed that sense of shared vulnerability, presenting the condemnation as an act of solidarity among states that see themselves as exposed to pressure from a more powerful neighbour.

Several other Arab governments, including Saudi Arabia, issued their own condemnations of the attacks and renewed calls for de-escalation. The chorus of criticism underlined how isolated Iran had become among the region’s governments, even as Tehran insisted its actions were defensive. For Yemen, joining that chorus offered a way to affirm its place within a regional bloc whose support has been important to the government throughout its conflict with the Houthis.

Yemen’s interest in preventing a wider war is also shaped by geography. The country sits alongside the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a corridor that connects the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean and forms part of the arteries of global trade. Any spread of conflict involving Iran and its neighbours could reach these waters, threatening commercial shipping and energy cargoes and potentially drawing in outside powers. That vulnerability gives the government in Aden a direct stake in seeing tensions contained rather than allowed to escalate.

Even as it looks outward, Yemen continues to face one of the world’s gravest humanitarian emergencies at home. United Nations agencies estimate that more than 22 million Yemenis will need humanitarian assistance and protection during 2026, with over 18 million people acutely food insecure and more than five million displaced within the country’s borders. Malnutrition among young children remains widespread, and outbreaks of preventable diseases such as cholera and measles have recurred. Aid agencies have appealed for roughly 2.16 billion US dollars to reach the most vulnerable this year, and persistent funding shortfalls continue to constrain the response.

Against that backdrop, the government’s decision to speak out on a regional crisis reflects both principle and calculation. Condemning the strikes allowed Aden to signal solidarity with its Gulf backers while advancing its own interest in regional stability, at a moment when the war at home leaves little room for further shocks. Whether the diplomatic pressure from Yemen and its neighbours can help steer the region away from escalation remains uncertain, but the statement made clear that Yemen’s government intends to be counted among those urging restraint as the confrontation with Iran continues to unfold.