Illustrative image, source: the Houthis media wing
Late on October 7, the Saudi-led coalition announced that it had intercepted a ballistic missile and two suicide drones which were launched from Yemen, allegedly by the Houthis (Ansar Allah).
In a statement, the coalition said that the missile and drones were heading towards the city of Khamis Mushait in the southern Saudi province of ‘Asir.
“We take operational measures to protect civilians from violations and futile attempts,” the statement reads.
Usually, ballistic missiles are intercepted with MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air missile systems of the Saudi-led coalition and its allies,. Suicide drones are, however, shot down by fighter jets of the Royal Saudi Air Force with air-to-air missiles.
A day earlier, a suicide drone launched from Yemen targeted Abha International Airport. Four civilian workers were wounded. The Saudi-led coalition claimed that a drone launch site of the Houthis in northern Yemen was destroyed in response to the attack.
The Houthis are not announcing their small-scale missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia like before, likely to confuse the Saudi-led coalition.
The Yemeni group stepped up its attacks on Saudi Arabia after the recent withdrawal of US air-defense systems from the Kingdom.
