Coalition intercepts and destroys four Houthi drones targeting southern region

On Tuesday, the Saudi-led coalition operating in Yemen reported that they had successfully intercepted and destroyed a series of ballistic missiles and drones launched by the Houthi group towards two regions of Saudi Arabia. The Houthis had fired three ballistic missiles in the country's eastern region and four drones in the southern region.

The Saudi Civil Defence had issued early warning alerts for potential threats in both the eastern region and Kharj governorate. However, the coalition subsequently stated that the danger had passed in both areas.

Tensions between Saudi Arabia and the Houthi group have escalated recently, following the latter's capture of strategic areas along Yemen's Red Sea coast last month. This advance brought the Houthis closer to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a crucial global shipping route for Gulf oil producers located on the other side of the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz.

The renewed conflict has ended the 2022 UN-brokered truce that had largely halted attacks between the Saudi-led coalition, which supports Yemen's internationally recognized government, and the Houthi rebels who control the capital Sanaa. This development has added another front to the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran.