Saudi-Led Coalition Says It Intercepted Missiles and Drones Aimed at Riyadh

The Saudi-led coalition said on Saturday that it had intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles aimed at Riyadh, the Saudi capital, which it said had been launched by the Houthis, a Yemeni armed group. Al Jazeera Ballistic missiles are rockets that travel along a high arc before falling onto their target.

The coalition's spokesperson, Turki al-Maliki, said that two suspected Houthi drones, or unmanned aircraft, were also intercepted and destroyed on Saturday, in Riyadh and in southern regions of the kingdom. Saudi authorities said at least 26 people have been killed in suspected Houthi drone and missile attacks in Saudi Arabia since September 23.

The attacks are part of a wider conflict in Yemen, where Saudi-led forces support the government against the Houthis. Forces backing the government said they had intercepted several drones launched toward the Yemeni city of Marib. The International Organization for Migration, a United Nations agency, has said that more than 340,000 people have been displaced by fighting in Yemen since August.

On the ground, Yemeni army spokesman Colonel Majid al-Nuzaili said government forces had made gains against the Houthis in the al-Hazm and Madghal districts of al-Jawf province. He said fighting had intensified in Marib at the same time.

The Houthis' military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said the Saudi-led coalition had carried out 72 air strikes against Houthi positions in the provinces of Saada, Taiz, Lahij and al-Jawf over the previous 24 hours.

The US Embassy in Riyadh issued a nationwide security alert on Saturday. It urged Americans in Saudi Arabia to exercise heightened vigilance because of an increased threat of Houthi attacks.