- Coalition spokesman said air-defense units intercepted the missiles
- Iranian-backed Houthi militia have launched several missiles at Saudi Arabia in recent months
LONDON: The Saudi Arabian-led coalition announced Wednesday that its air defense systems intercepted at least three Houthi missiles launched toward the capital Riyadh, as residents of the capital posted on social media their accounts of hearing a loud explosion and seeing smoke in the sky.
Three rockets were intercepted in the capital and the southern cities of Jizan and Najran, according to state media and the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen. There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.
The missiles followed the downing of two Houthi drones earlier on Wednesday in Jizan and the nearby city of Abha, the coalition said.
Houthis militia have launched missiles at Riyadh in recent months, and dozens have been fired at southern Saudi Arabian cities that border Yemen.
A missile fragment last month killed an Egyptian resident of Riyadh — the first death reported in the capital as a result of the Houthi missile strikes.
The coalition also announced that its defence systems have downed a drone that was directed towards Abha airport and a second drone that was heading towards civilians neighborhood in Jazan. The coalition spokesperson explained that the drones resembles the types and specifications of those used by the Iranians. The coalition warned Houthi militia and those supporting them for using terrorist suicide attacks tactics against civilian areas, saying that the coalition will respond in the most decisive way against those terrorist intrusions targeting residential areas in the kingdom.
The spokesperson added that those supplying the Houthi militias with drone capabilities will also pay a dire price.