Saudi intercepts and destroys ballistic missile over Riyadh; Houthi rebels of Yemen claims attack

Riyadh, November 5: Saudi Arabia on Saturday evening intercepted a ballistic missile fired from conflict-torn Yemen toward one of the kingdom's major international airports on the outskirts of the capital, Riyadh. However, there was no casualty reported as Saudi Arabia’s air defence forces immediately destroyed the ballistic missile. The Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed the missile attack on Kingdom.

 

Notably, Saudi Arabia’s air defence forces intercepted a ballistic missile from Yemen in northeastern Riyadh. The defence forces said that the missile did not cause any major damage as it was immediately destroyed. On the other side, Saudi Arabia's Civil Aviation Authority also said that the missile did not cause any damage to the King Khalid International Airport and that flights were not disrupted.

The Saudi military spokesman condemned the attack saying the missile was fired "indiscriminately" toward a populated civilian area. Meanwhile, the Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed that the missile was fired by them. Several Houthi-owned media outlets, including Al-Masira and SABA, reported the rebels (Houthis) had launched the missile.

The launch of a missile from Houthis in Yemen came a week after a suspected airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition killed at least 29 people, including children, in northern Yemen.

BACKGROUND:

Interestingly, this is the first time that a Houthi missile has come this close to a heavily populated area of Saudi Arabia. Riyadh is around 1,000 kilometers, north of the country's border with Yemen. Earlier, Saudi Arabia intercepted missiles fired from Houthis several times in the year 2015 when a Saudi-led coalition launched a war against Houthi rebels and their allies after they captured northern Yemen and ousted the Saudi-backed president from power. The kingdom has also imposed an air and sea blockade on Yemen.

The civil war in Yemen has killed more than 10,000 civilians and displaced 3 million others. Yemen is also suffering from the disastrous outbreak of cholera due to which 2180 civilians are killed while suspect cases have reached to 8,72,415 in the time period of 6 months.