Iran-backed Houthi forces in Yemen said they carried out a series of drone and ballistic missile attacks targeting Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, and energy facilities along the Red Sea coast. The claims came amid renewed fighting in Yemen’s civil war, in which Saudi Arabia backs the internationally recognised government.
Saudi authorities said air defences intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile fired at Riyadh. A Saudi-led coalition spokesperson also said air defences stopped what were described as “hostile attempts to target civilians” in Bish, Taif, Farasan and Yanbu. The authorities did not confirm the Houthis’ wider claims or report casualties.
A column of black smoke rose from fuel tanks near Riyadh’s international airport on Saturday. The incident temporarily disrupted flights, with reports of delays and cancellations at King Khalid International Airport. The BBC said an AFP journalist saw firefighters attempting to extinguish flames from a burnt-out Aramco fuel tank, although the supplied material does not establish the cause of the fire.
Air-raid alerts sounded in Riyadh for the first time since the Houthis intensified attacks on Saudi Arabia in July. Residents told AFP they heard explosions after receiving alerts, while Saudi Civil Defence later issued an all-clear. The Saudi-led coalition said its air defences had also responded to threats in several other cities.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya al-Sarea said a “large number” of ballistic and cruise missiles and drones had been used against what he called sensitive sites in Riyadh and facilities belonging to state energy company Aramco in Yanbu. He said the attacks were retaliation for Saudi strikes on Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, and accused Saudi Arabia of conducting 300 strikes across Yemen during the previous week.
The BBC reported an unconfirmed AFP account saying fighting between Houthi forces and Saudi-backed government troops killed 48 people on Saturday. The Houthis reportedly said 31 of their fighters had died, while government sources cited by AFP said 17 soldiers were killed. Separately, the International Organization for Migration said the recent fighting had displaced more than 104,796 people.