Saudi-led coalition says it intercepted Houthi drones near Riyadh as UAE reportedly agrees to rejoin Yemen war
Riyadh residents received a phone alert about a 'hostile aerial threat'. The US Embassy urged Americans to take extreme caution at Saudi airports.
The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said on Sunday 18 October that it intercepted and destroyed drones over the Riyadh and Eastern regions of Saudi Arabia. It said it also shot down two ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis towards Khamis Mushait in the south-west, Gulf News reported, citing the Saudi Press Agency.
Riyadh residents received a mobile phone alert early on Sunday warning of a “hostile aerial threat”, AFP reported. The alert was lifted a few minutes later.
The coalition said a Saudi reconnaissance helicopter crashed in the Najran region because of a technical fault, killing its two crew. The Houthis had claimed they shot down an Apache helicopter in Najran, according to Gulf News.
The US Embassy in Riyadh urged American citizens to take extreme caution at Saudi airports after recent missile and drone attacks on them. It said US government staff need special permission to use any Saudi airport. Gulf News said flights at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh remained suspended.
The United Arab Emirates has agreed to resume payments to some Yemeni government forces fighting the Houthis, and Saudi Arabia will give those forces air cover, The Guardian reported, citing sources in Yemen. Neither government has commented publicly. Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said he was asking parliament to let the army defend Saudi Arabia if needed, stressing Egypt would take no offensive action.
Background
The Iran-aligned Houthis have controlled Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, since 2014 and are fighting the UN-recognised government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia. The UAE pulled out of operations in Yemen in January after a split with Riyadh. Since the latest round of fighting began in August, more than 200,000 people have been displaced, according to the UN, as cited by The Guardian. On 15 October the UN Security Council issued a statement affirming Saudi Arabia’s right to self-defence under international law.
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