Saudi Arabia intercepts drones and missiles as fighting with Yemen's Houthis continues

Saudi Arabia intercepted drones and missiles over its capital Riyadh and southern regions on Sunday, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen reported, as clashes with the Houthi rebels continued. The conflict has become a volatile battleground in the US-Israeli campaign against Iran, rendering Saudi Arabia a critical target in the broader conflict.

On Sunday, Saudi civil defense authorities issued emergency alerts for Riyadh, Abha, and Khamis Mushait before retracting them shortly thereafter. The coalition stated that two drones and a ballistic missile were launched toward Riyadh, along with a cruise missile aimed at the southern city of Khamis Mushait. Later, it claimed to have neutralized ten ballistic missiles targeted at southern Saudi Arabia.

The Houthi insurgents threatened to retaliate by striking King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, which reopened with limited operations on Sunday after a deadly assault earlier this month. The Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack and the assault on Saudi oil facilities on Saturday. Saudi authorities did not explicitly address the Houthi assertions.

Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree declared the airport a "military target" and cautioned all airlines, personnel, and travelers to avoid it. On Saturday, the airport announced that Terminal 1 would be reserved for domestic flights and Terminal 2 for international flights operated by domestic carriers, commencing on Sunday. The airport ceased operations on October 10 following an attack - attributed to the Houthis - that claimed 13 lives and left over 300 injured, the deadliest incident in the kingdom in over a decade.

Saudi Arabia has intensified its airstrikes against the Houthis since the group captured strategic territory along the Red Sea coast last month, encroaching on Bab el-Mandeb Strait - a crucial maritime bottleneck and shipping route for Gulf oil exporters on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz. The resurgence of hostilities in Yemen has shattered a UN-mediated truce that had largely persisted since 2022.

Saudi Arabia entered Yemen's civil war in 2015 at the helm of a coalition backing the internationally recognized government after the Houthis overthrew the capital Sanaa a year earlier.