Yemenupdated 20m ago3 min read
MapSaudi Air Defences Intercept Houthi Missiles And Drones Over Riyadh As Strikes Intensify
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Saudi-led coalition intercepts ballistic missiles and drones over Riyadh and southern regions. Houthis escalate with missiles and drones targeting Riyadh and Mecca/Medina areas.
19 outlets told this the same way.
Outlets did split on Saudi Air Defenses Intercept Houthi Ballistic Missile Over Riyadh After Explosions →
Riyadh under barrage
Saudi Arabia’s air defence forces intercepted ballistic missiles and drones targeting Riyadh and other parts of the kingdom on October 25 as fighting between the Saudi-led coalition and Yemen’s Houthi movement intensified. The Saudi-led coalition said it destroyed a ballistic missile and two drones directed towards the capital, and it later reported intercepting ten additional ballistic missiles launched towards southern Saudi Arabia. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea claimed responsibility for seven operations targeting locations including Riyadh, Yanbu, Rabigh, Dammam, Najran and Khamis Mushait, and the group said its attacks were retaliation for intensive Saudi airstrikes against areas under Houthi control in Yemen, including the capital, Sanaa.
The Saudi Press Agency separately confirmed the interception of a ballistic missile targeting Riyadh, while residents reported explosions and received warnings on their mobile phones. Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi said the strikes represented “a grave violation of the sanctity of the Holy Sites and a provocation to the sentiments of Muslims worldwide,” referring to interceptions in Mecca province.
Airport warning and interceptions
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree warned civilians away from King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, saying “King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh is not safe because it is a military target, and we renew our warning to airlines, employees, and travelers,” as the airport began partially reopening on October 25 after earlier attacks. The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted and destroyed a drone in the Riyadh region and also reported intercepting a cruise missile targeting Khamis Mushait in southwestern Saudi Arabia, with warning sirens blaring out across Taif and Jazan. The coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Maliki confirmed that Saudi air defences had intercepted incoming projectiles, and residents described hearing explosions while civil defence authorities issued emergency notifications warning people about potential incoming attacks.
The Houthis denied targeting Muslim holy sites in Saudi Arabia, calling such claims “false and unfounded,” after Saudi Civil Defence said shrapnel from two intercepted ballistic missiles fell in Jeddah, Taif, Rabigh, and Wadi Al-Mughammas in Mecca province. Reuters reported that the Houthis renewed their warning against using King Khalid International Airport, which resumed operations in two lounges after a previously devastating attack that occurred earlier this month.
Yemen strikes and wider war
Yemen’s armed forces spokesman Yahya Saree announced two ballistic missile operations against gatherings of Saudi-backed mercenaries in Aden and Lahj provinces, saying the strikes inflicted dozens of casualties. Saree said the Salah al-Din area of Aden province was targeted with a ballistic missile, and he said the al-Waht area in Lahj province was also heavily struck, with dozens killed and wounded. The Yemen account said the strikes destroyed large numbers of tanks and military vehicles as well as weapons depots managed under a Saudi officer named Badr al-Harbi.
Reuters linked the Saudi-Houthi escalation to a wider conflict, saying the front had become one of the fronts of destabilization within the broader U.S.-Israel attack on Iran, turning Saudi Arabia into a pressure point in the wider war. The Saudi-led coalition said emergency alerts were issued for Riyadh, Abha, and Khamis Mushait before authorities announced minutes later that the danger had passed, while the Houthis maintained that the airport remained a “military target.”