Houthi missiles aimed at Taif, Yanbu intercepted; deaths in Saudi airstrikes
Saudi Arabia says it intercepted Houthi missiles aimed at Riyadh, Taif and Yanbu, with debris falling in Mecca. The Houthis report deaths from Saudi strikes in Yemen.
Symbolic image · Photo: Richard Mortel / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0 (cropped and resized)
The war between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Houthis continued on Saturday. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted a ballistic missile aimed at Riyadh in the morning and later two more targeting Taif and Yanbu in the west of the country, and that a drone was shot down over the Eastern Province. Civil defense issued alerts for Mecca, Jeddah, Taif and Yanbu that were lifted after a few minutes. According to civil defense, debris from intercepted missiles fell in Mecca.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree denied targeting Mecca and Medina, calling the claim a “huge lie.” The Houthis claimed attacks on airports in Riyadh, Dammam and Najran, an air base in Khamis Mushait, and oil pumping stations and a pipeline. The claims could not be independently confirmed.
In Yemen, the Houthi-run Health Ministry reported nine people killed in Saudi airstrikes over two days, including five in Sanaa on Saturday. Four members of one family, including women and children, were reportedly killed in a strike near Taiz. Houthi-affiliated media gave higher casualty figures in some cases; the figures cannot be independently verified. Saudi Arabia did not immediately comment.