Saudi-led coalition says 2 pilots killed in chopper crash near Yemen
The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis on Sunday said two pilots were killed when their helicopter crashed near the Yemen border, after the group said it shot the aircraft down. The coalition blamed a “technical malfunction” for the incident, which inflicted its first military fatalities since the long-running war with the Houthis reignited in July. The incident comes a week after strikes…
The Saudi-led coalition confirmed on Sunday that two pilots perished in a helicopter crash near the border with Yemen. The group claimed to have shot down the aircraft, attributing the incident to a "technical malfunction." This marked the coalition's first military fatalities since the conflict with the Houthis reignited in July. The event occurred a week after Houthi strikes at Riyadh's international airport resulted in 13 fatalities, the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia in over a decade.
According to the Saudi Press Agency, the incident took place within Saudi territory in Najran Region when an AH-6i reconnaissance helicopter belonging to the Ministry of National Guard crashed due to a technical malfunction. The helicopter's two officers tragically lost their lives in the accident.
Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree later stated that the group had "downed an Apache helicopter belonging to the Saudi enemy" in the same region. As Yemen's conflict rekindled and intensified following the Houthis' seizure of strategic territory along the Red Sea coast, the Saudi-led coalition has intensified its air raids against Houthi targets, including tankers in the Red Sea, oil facilities, and King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.
The coalition intercepted two drones near Riyadh and a third over the oil-rich Eastern Province overnight. Saudi authorities had previously issued a threat alert in the capital. In addition, two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthis towards Khamis Mushait were intercepted by Saudi forces in the kingdom's south.
Houthi forces declared a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia and captured territories around the Bab al-Mandeb strait, the vital Red Sea export route for Saudi oil, after Iran blockaded the Strait of Hormuz. On Sunday, Egypt's parliament planned an emergency session to discuss defense measures to protect Saudi Arabia against Houthi attacks, following President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's request to lawmakers for support in defending the kingdom.
Written by urgent.news from Dawn's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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