The Saudi-led Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen said Saturday evening that it had intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis toward Riyadh, after explosions were heard in the Saudi capital at dawn for the first time since hostilities resumed.
Saudi Arabia has faced an increase in Houthi attacks in recent days as the group continues fighting Yemeni government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition.
Saudi authorities issued the first air-raid warning in the capital since fighting in Yemen resumed, prompting concern among Riyadh residents after explosions were heard during the early hours of Saturday.
A message received by residents shortly before 3 a.m. local time warned that the area was under an “enemy aerial threat” and urged people to remain indoors.
AFP journalists subsequently heard two explosions before the Saudi Civil Defense lifted the alert about half an hour later.
“It was definitely frightening. I did not expect that,” a 27-year-old resident of northern Riyadh told AFP.
Another resident in central Riyadh described the incident as “terrifying.”
Black Smoke Near Riyadh Airport
A fuel tank belonging to Saudi oil giant Aramco caught fire near King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, causing significant disruption to flight operations before services returned to normal.
An AFP correspondent reported that firefighters extinguished the blaze involving a tank bearing the Saudi oil company’s logo, while black smoke was seen rising toward the airport.
Footage circulated online and verified by AFP showed a column of black smoke rising above the airport buildings.
On Saturday evening, coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki said on X that the Houthis had launched a missile toward Riyadh at dawn and confirmed that it had been intercepted and destroyed.
He also accused the Houthis of attempting to target civilians and civilian infrastructure in the cities of Baish, Taif, Farasan and Yanbu, saying the attacks had been thwarted by Saudi air defenses.
The Houthis, for their part, said they had targeted sites in Riyadh as well as an Aramco facility in Yanbu on the Red Sea coast. These claims have not been independently verified.
The developments followed an earlier Houthi attempt to target Mecca with a drone, an incident that drew condemnation across the Muslim world and further intensified tensions in the renewed conflict in Yemen.
The Iran-backed Houthis have been fighting Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces since military operations resumed in July. The group also announced a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia and began targeting vessels in the Red Sea.
Source: AFP
