Saudi Arabia ‘imports ballistic missiles over Riyadh’ | Houthis News

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A Saudi-led coalition blames Yemen’s Houthis when state TV broadcasts a film of airstrikes over Riyadh.

Numerous explosions were heard as the night skies over Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, ignited with clear flames on Saturday when a Saudi-led military coalition announced a missile attack blamed on rebels Houthi Yemen.

Brigadier General Turki al-Malki, a defense for the Saudi-led coalition, said in a statement that the Houthis fired ballistic missiles at Riyadh and three drones with booby grip toward the Jizan area, with the fourth towards the southwestern town of Khamis Mushait.

No casualties were reported, although state-run Al Ekhbariya television reported fragments of the missiles scattered over several Riyadh neighborhoods, damaging at least one home.

There was no comment from the Houthis.

The attacks came when Saudi Arabia hosted a Formula E tournament on the outskirts of Riyadh, state media attended by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said.

Al Ekhbariya was filming what looked like airborne explosions over Riyadh, and social media users also posted videos, with some showing residents shaking while watching the night sky fire exploded, resembling the kingdom’s Patriot missile batteries including the ballistic missile.

Al Malki said the Houthis were trying in a “systematic and deliberate way to target civilians”.

The U.S. Ambassador to Riyadh issued a warning to Americans, urging them to “remain vigilant for fear of further attacks in the future”. The search website showed a flight of several scheduled flights to Riyadh international airport canceled or delayed in the hour after the attack.

As Yemen’s year-long war erodes, Houthi missile and drone attacks on the kingdom have become commonplace, rarely causing damage. Earlier this month, the Houthis hit an empty passenger plane at Saudi Arabia’s southwestern airport with a bomb-filled drone, causing it to catch fire.

Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition has faced widespread international criticism for airstrikes in Yemen that have killed hundreds of civilians and met unarmed targets, taking into account including schools, hospitals and marriage parties.

U.S. President Joe Biden announced this month that he was ending his country’s support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen, including the sale of “relevant” weapons. But he stressed that the U.S. would continue to help Saudi Arabia defend itself from outside attacks.

The Houthis took over the Yemeni capital and much of the north of the country in 2014, forcing the government to go into exile and months later, forcing Saudi Arabia and its allies to intervene. But years of bombing have failed to seize the rebels ’capture of the capital Sanaa, and have expanded their reach in the north of the country.

The Houthis are now pushing ahead with a deadly attack to capture the fortress of the Yemeni government in Marib, where some of the richest oil fields in the country are found.

Yemen’s erosion conflict has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced millions, according to international organizations, including what the United Nations calls the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.

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