Houthis Pair Missile and Drone Attacks on Saudi Arabia With a Propaganda Campaign

Yemen's Houthi militia, an armed group backed by Iran, has been firing missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia while also waging a propaganda war, The New York Times reported on October 23. The paper said the group is drawing on the culture of its sworn enemies in its renewed fighting with Saudi Arabia.

The fighting has escalated over recent weeks. Al Jazeera reported in mid-October that the Houthis were seeking to raise the cost of the war for Saudi Arabia. Earlier that month, Saudi Arabia said two airports had been hit and three people injured in attacks, and it has described its own airports as targets in the renewed exchanges.

The Houthis have struck major Saudi sites. According to Reuters, the group attacked Riyadh airport and the headquarters of Saudi Aramco, the state oil company, and Saudi Arabia intercepted some of the missiles fired. A Reuters report from October 11 said one person died in an attack on a Saudi airport, and that the Houthis had renewed a warning against the use of Saudi airports.

The most serious toll came at Abha airport, in southwestern Saudi Arabia near the Yemeni border. The Saudi-led coalition, a military grouping led by Saudi Arabia, said Houthi attacks on the airport killed three people and wounded 28, Reuters reported.

The Houthis have said more attacks are coming. Reuters reported that the group vowed further attacks on Saudi airports and oil facilities. It described those sites as legitimate targets and said the attacks were retaliation for Saudi strikes on Yemen.

Not every incident has been acknowledged by the group. On October 21, Reuters reported that the Houthis denied launching drones toward the Saudi city of Medina.