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On June 24, the Yemeni Missiles Force [loyal to the Houthis] announced that it had launched a salvo of Burkan-2H ballistic missiles at the information center of the Defense Ministry of Saudi Arabia and other military positions in the Saudi capital of Riyadh.
The Burkan-2H is a is a mobile short-range ballistic missile with a range of over 800km. According to experts, the missile is a member of the Soviet Scud family, and shares design features with the Iranian Qiam-1 missile. The Houthis unveiled the Burkan-2H for the first time on July 22 of 2017 when it was launched at Saudi Arabia.
Meanwhile, the UAE-based al-Arabiya TV reported that the Royal Saudi Air Defense Force (RSAF) intercepted a ballistic missile with its Patriot surface-to-air missile systems over Riyadh. Saudi activities released videos confirming the interception of at least one missile.
This missile strike is likely a response to the recent attacks of the Saudi-led coalition and its Yemeni proxies on the city of al-Hudaydah in western Yemen. Since the beginning of June, the coalition launched two attacks and failed to capture the city.
Usually, the Saudi-led coalition responds to such missile strikes by carrying out a series of airstrikes on the northern Yemeni province of Saada, the heartland of the Houthis.
