Yemen's Houthis say they struck sensitive sites in Riyadh with missiles and drones after flames and smoke rose near the Saudi capital's main airport. The Saudi-led coalition says it intercepted a missile aimed at the city, while the Houthis also claim an attack on an Aramco facility in Yanbu.
Smoke rises near Riyadh's main airport
Yemen's Houthis said they attacked sensitive sites in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Saturday with missiles and drones, hours after flames and a large plume of smoke were seen near the city's main airport. Saudi Arabia had sent alerts overnight warning of potential danger around Riyadh, amid an escalation in Houthi attacks on the kingdom.
Reuters video and photographs showed a huge pillar of black smoke rising in the area, with the airport highway and main terminal building in the foreground. Flames were visible at one point rising from behind what appeared to be fuel tanks.
The Houthis did not specify what they had targeted in Riyadh, but said they had also attacked an Aramco facility in the Red Sea city of Yanbu, a key Saudi oil export hub. The group said the operation came as a response to an attack in the Yemeni capital Sanaa.
Coalition says it destroyed an incoming missile
The Saudi-led military coalition fighting the Houthis said its air defenses had destroyed a missile fired by the Yemeni group toward Riyadh early on Saturday. It also said it had foiled attacks targeting civilians in Bish, Farasan, Taif and Yanbu, without saying whether there was any damage.
Saudi civil defense sent phone alerts overnight about potential aerial attacks in Riyadh and Al-Kharj, east of the capital, before issuing an all-clear on Saturday morning. A Reuters journalist in Riyadh's Olaya area heard booms before the all-clear was sent. These were the first such alerts in Riyadh since the escalation with the Houthis began in July, though some had been issued earlier this year after the start of the US-Iran war.
A widening conflict along the Red Sea
The Houthis, who control the most populous parts of Yemen and much of the north, have been launching attacks on Saudi Arabia since declaring a naval blockade against Riyadh in July, with strikes targeting Saudi vessels in the Red Sea. The attacks have hit Saudi cities, energy infrastructure and shipping, threatening global oil supplies and the main alternative Red Sea route for Gulf exports while the Strait of Hormuz remains blockaded.
This fighting has become a new front in the wider war that began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran at the end of February. US President Donald Trump has rebuffed Saudi requests for direct US military intervention against the Houthis.
UN Security Council condemns the escalation
The UN Security Council, in a statement on Friday, strongly condemned continued Houthi attacks against the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, including attacks affecting civilian and energy infrastructure that have injured civilians, including women and children. The Council also condemned Houthi military escalation in Yemen.
Source: US Top News and Analysis
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