Yemen's Houthis on Thursday fired missiles at the presidential palace in Aden, which also serves as the headquarters of the internationally recognized government, security sources told AFP, while a journalist saw smoke rising from the site.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he had previously spoken with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, in his first acknowledgment of direct contact.

Speaking at an election rally with Israel's Druze community, Netanyahu made reference to a bloody attack suffered by the Druze in Syria in July 2025.

A Saudi foreign ministry official on Thursday said the country reached out to Yemen's Houthis in recent weeks as fighting escalates between the two sides, but the group refused to meet in Oman.

A Saudi foreign ministry official on Thursday accused Iran of encouraging the Houthis in their ongoing fight with the kingdom, adding that Tehran continues to arm and train the group.

Israeli opposition politician Gadi Eisenkot, Prime Miniter Benjamin Netanyahu's main rival in upcoming elections, vowed Thursday to defeat Hamas in Gaza if he becomes prime minister following the October 27 vote.

Israel's army chief said that the military was reinforcing troop levels "across all fronts", citing an increased risk of escalation as Israel heads into elections this later month.

On a visit to the occupied West Bank, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir said the potential for incidents on Israel's borders had grown because of the election period, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu facing a tight race to stay in power in the October 27 poll.

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis said on Wednesday they had targeted facilities belonging to Saudi oil giant Aramco as well as Riyadh airport, as they vowed to conduct more attacks.

"The Yemeni Armed Forces carried out a high-quality military operation targeting Aramco in Dhahran, in the Eastern Province, King Khalid International Airport, and the Aramco refinery in Riyadh. This was carried out using a large number of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones," military spokesperson Yahya Saree said, adding "operations toward Saudi depths will continue in the coming days, targeting Saudi enemy airports and oil facilities".

Colombia on Wednesday officially opened its embassy in Jerusalem, joining a small but growing list of countries to do so while most other embassies to Israel remain in Tel Aviv.

"This is an important date for the State of Israel. It's also an important date for the city of Jerusalem," Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said during a ceremony while signing the embassy's guest book.

Loud explosions were heard in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Wednesday, AFP journalists in the city reported, as Yemen's Houthis step up attacks in an escalating war.

Messages were received on phones in Riyadh warning people of an "aerial threat" and urging them to take shelter. The alert was lifted a few minutes later.

An Israeli strike on an apartment in Gaza City killed one woman early Wednesday, according to officials at Shifa hospital.

Israel’s military said it struck a Hamas militant but was still assessing the strike's outcome, without elaborating.