Direct proof of use
The BTR-60 is documented in the 2014 Yemen Civil War as part of Yemen's pre-war armored vehicle pool that became available to battlefield parties after the Houthi takeover. Oryx's 2015 handbook of pre-war Yemeni fighting vehicles lists BTR-60PB armored personnel carriers and a BTR-60 fitted with an AML-90 turret among the vehicles in Yemeni Army service before the 2014-2015 Houthi takeover, and states that the list clarifies what equipment was available to Yemeni parties on the battlefield.
The later IISS Military Balance regional chapter lists BTR-60 armored personnel carriers in the Yemen/Houthi equipment record during the ongoing conflict. Taken together, the sources support fielding in the conflict, but they do not identify a specific BTR-60 unit, battle, or loss event.
Sources: Oryx Yemeni Fighting Vehicles, IISS Middle East and North Africa
Timeline
The relevant chain begins before the civil-war phase: BTR-60PBs were already in Yemeni Army service before the Houthi takeover of Yemen in 2014 and 2015, according to Oryx's photographed inventory of pre-war Yemeni fighting vehicles.
As Houthi-aligned forces expanded from Amran into Sanaa, UN and regional-analysis sources described the capture, looting, and diversion of Yemeni army weapons and armored vehicles. The UN Panel of Experts reported that the Houthis captured armored vehicles, including tanks, from the 310th Armoured Brigade and from Sanaa army facilities; a separate Arab Center analysis said Houthi fighters amassed tanks, artillery, armored vehicles, and light weapons from the First Armored Division headquarters after the fall of Sanaa.
By the post-2015 conflict record, the IISS Military Balance chapter continued to list BTR-60 APCs in the Yemen/Houthi equipment record, supporting continued conflict-era possession or fielding rather than a one-time pre-war inventory note.
Sources: Oryx Yemeni Fighting Vehicles, UN Panel of Experts 2015, Arab Center Sanaa Analysis, IISS Middle East and North Africa
Role and battlefield context
The sourced role for the BTR-60 in Yemen is armored mobility: an 8x8 armored personnel carrier available to move and protect troops, with at least one locally altered BTR-60/AML-90 hybrid also documented in the pre-war vehicle pool. The public sources support presence and fielding more clearly than they support detailed tactical employment.
Attribution is split because Yemen's state arsenal fragmented during the opening phase of the war. Oryx identifies the vehicles as pre-war Yemeni Army equipment; the UN Panel of Experts and Arab Center analysis document the broader Houthi/Saleh capture, looting, or diversion of army armor and weapons; and IISS later places BTR-60 APCs in the Yemen/Houthi equipment record. The parent catalog row therefore lists both Houthi-aligned forces and Yemeni government/coalition forces, while this detail page treats the Houthi-aligned record as the stronger later attribution.
The sources do not establish quantities, specific operating units, or confirmed dates of individual BTR-60 combat actions. The evidence is strongest for battlefield availability, conflict-era fielding, and armored personnel-carrier role, rather than for a dated incident log of particular BTR-60 engagements.
Sources: Oryx Yemeni Fighting Vehicles, UN Panel of Experts 2015, Arab Center Sanaa Analysis, IISS Middle East and North Africa
