Saudi air defences intercept missile as fighting continues in Yemen
Air defences in Saudi Arabia intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile aimed at the kingdom's southern region on Monday, according to a statement from Major General Turki al-Maliki, spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition. A ballistic missile is a guided missile that follows a high, arcing path. Al Jazeera
Al-Maliki also said air defences destroyed a drone launched toward the same region on Sunday evening. Saudi Civil Defence issued alerts on Monday warning of potential danger in Abha, Khamis Mushait, Taif and Najran, and later lifted them. The authority also warned residents against filming, publishing or sharing information about the missile and drone attacks.
The attacks come as fighting continues inside Yemen between government forces, backed by the Saudi-led coalition, and the Houthis, whom Reuters describes as Iran-backed. In early October, the coalition said it had intercepted three Houthi ballistic missiles. It vowed retaliation at the time, saying the attacks "will not go unpunished." Reuters
Yemeni army spokesman Colonel Majed Abdullah al-Nazili said on Sunday evening that government forces had carried out 1,272 targeting operations against Houthi fighters, fortifications and weapons supplies over 24 hours. He said military operations were ongoing in al-Jawf, Marib and al-Bayda. He also claimed government forces had killed roughly 500 Houthi fighters and destroyed or disabled nearly 170 vehicles, pieces of equipment and heavy weapons.
Houthi-affiliated media reported that seven people were wounded in Saudi-led coalition air strikes on Hodeidah, a port city on the Red Sea coast. Separately, the same media reported that four people were wounded in attacks on the Ras Isa port dock and three others were injured in a strike on an oil company site in Bajil district.
In Taiz, Governor Nabil Shamsan said 120 health centres had stopped operating and another 66 were close to shutting down since the Houthis cut off supply routes to the city in early October. Nour al-Din al-Mansouri told Al Jazeera that at least 23 trucks had been damaged or overturned in the past two weeks while seeking alternative routes to Taiz.
