Houthi rebels in Yemen fire missiles into Saudi capital
Houthi officials said the missiles hit military targets, but Saudi Arabia said it intercepted the missiles.
Houthi rebels in Yemen said they had fired missiles into Saudi Arabia early this morning that reached the capital, Riyadh.
However, Saudi Arabia said it “successfully intercepted and destroyed" the missiles, which it said were headed toward Riyadh. The spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, Col. Turki al-Maliki, called the attack “a hostile, deliberate and systematic operation to target civilians and civilian objects,” according to the state-run Saudi Press Agency.
The Houthi movement, backed by Iran, has been embroiled in a civil war with the internationally recognized government, supported by a Saudi Arabia-led coalition, since 2015. The movement controls the capital, Sanaa, and other parts of the north and west. Violence between the internationally recognized government and Houthi forces has increased since a cease-fire expired last month.
The Houthi-affiliated Almasirah Media Network reported that Houthi forces launched “a barrage of ballistic, winged missiles and drones deep in Saudi Arabia,” saying the move was a response to the “Riyadh regime’s bloody military campaign.” The outlet said the forces hit Saudi military and intelligence targets in Riyadh and other parts of the country.
