Direct proof of use
Badr-1 use in the 2014 Yemen Civil War is documented through Houthi-aligned claims reported by established defense and news outlets, plus missile-event summaries that place the launches in Yemen-to-Saudi cross-border attacks. FDD's Long War Journal reported that Houthi sources named Badr-1 among projectiles fired into Saudi Arabia in March 2018 and said a Badr-1 was fired toward Jizan.
CSIS Missile Threat separately recorded May 2018 Houthi Badr-1 launches from Yemen toward Jizan and Najran, while later CSIS reporting recorded July 2018 and August 2019 Badr-1 launches toward Jizan. Al Jazeera reported the August 2019 Houthi claim of a ten-missile Badr-1 salvo at Jizan airport and the Saudi-led coalition response that several missiles were intercepted.
Sources: A peek inside Houthi rebels' recent missile strikes in Saudi Arabia, Houthi Missiles Target Jizan, Najran, Riyadh, Yemen Update: June 27-August 25, Houthis fire 10 ballistic missiles at Saudi airport
Timeline
The public Badr-1 launch record begins in early 2018, after the Houthi missile campaign against Saudi targets was already underway. In March 2018, Long War Journal reported Houthi-aligned claims that the newly public Badr-1 was included in a wider missile attack package and used against Jizan.
In May 2018, CSIS recorded two Badr-1 launches toward Jizan and Najran. In July 2018, Long War Journal described Houthi footage of a Badr-1 fired from an underground launcher toward an airport in Khamis Mushayt, and CSIS recorded another Badr-1 launch toward Jizan two days later. By August 2019, CSIS and Al Jazeera both reported Houthi claims of a ten-missile Badr-1 attack on Jizan airport.
Sources: A peek inside Houthi rebels' recent missile strikes in Saudi Arabia, Houthi Missiles Target Jizan, Najran, Riyadh, Yemen's Houthis highlight new underground missile launchers, Yemen Update: June 27-August 25, Houthis fire 10 ballistic missiles at Saudi airport
Narrative
In Yemen-war service, the Badr-1 was a Houthi-aligned cross-border strike rocket rather than a front-line artillery system documented in ground combat. The documented targets were Saudi border cities and airport areas, including Jizan, Najran, and Khamis Mushayt, with Saudi air defenses frequently reported as intercepting or defeating incoming missiles.
Open sources differ in terminology. Houthi statements and much event reporting called the Badr-1 a ballistic missile, while CSIS's broader study of the Yemen missile war describes the Badr-1 as more accurately understood as an unguided artillery rocket and says Houthi forces had used it since at least March 2018. UN panel reporting separately assessed the Badr-1 artillery rocket as locally manufactured in Yemen, supporting a local-production context without itself documenting a specific launch.
The available record supports Houthi-aligned use of Badr-1 rockets for long-range or cross-border strikes in the civil war. It does not provide a reliable public count of total Badr-1 launches, independently confirmed battle damage from each claimed strike, or the exact Houthi missile unit responsible for individual launches.
Sources: The Missile War in Yemen, UN Security Council Panel of Experts on Yemen 2022 report, Houthi Missiles Target Jizan, Najran, Riyadh, Yemen Update: June 27-August 25
