Houthis claim missile and drone attack on Riyadh, Saudi capital
Yemen's Houthi movement says it launched a large-scale missile and drone attack on Riyadh and oil facilities at Yanbu, while residents were told to stay indoors for the first time since the recent escalation.
Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen say they carried out drone and missile attacks against the Saudi capital Riyadh and energy sites on the country's Red Sea coast over the weekend. A column of black smoke was seen rising near Riyadh's international airport on Saturday, apparently from fuel tanks, hours after air raid alerts were issued across the city.
It marked the first time residents had been urged to stay indoors since the conflict with the Houthis recently escalated. Saudi authorities have not issued an official comment on the incident.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya al-Sarea said a large number of ballistic and cruise missiles along with drones were used to strike "sensitive sites" in Riyadh and facilities belonging to state oil company Aramco in the coastal city of Yanbu. He described the attack as retaliation for Saudi Arabia's efforts to strike the Yemeni capital Sanaa, claiming Saudi forces had carried out around 300 strikes across Yemen over the past week.
The Houthis have repeatedly targeted sites inside Saudi Arabia in recent months and this week claimed responsibility for downing a Saudi fighter jet over Yemen. The group remains engaged in a civil war against Yemen's internationally recognised, Saudi-backed government.
According to an unconfirmed AFP report citing military sources from both sides, fighting on Saturday killed 48 people. The UN's International Organization for Migration said on Friday that displacement from recent fighting had surpassed 104,796 people.
Multiple explosions were reported in Riyadh, and King Khalid International Airport experienced significant delays and cancellations. Saudi Civil Defence had issued overnight alerts warning of danger before declaring an all-clear on Saturday morning.
The Houthis recently seized the strategic port city of Mokha and Perim Island, a key point along a shipping route used for Saudi exports to Asia and Europe. Investment bank JP Morgan said on Friday it was struggling to predict how the conflict would affect oil prices.