Arab News | Shrapnel from intercepted Houthi missile injures resident in Asir

RIYADH: At least one person was injured by falling debris from an intercepted ballistic missile in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern governorate of Ahad Rafidah, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported early Saturday.

The missile was fired late Friday by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi group, SPA said, quoting a spokesman for the Saudi Directorate of Civil Defense. The incident injured an Asian resident and damaged a prayer room inside a building and several vehicles, the spokesman said.

Ahad Rafidah is in the Asir region, which has been repeatedly targeted by Houthi missile and drone attacks.

Earlier Friday, Saudi air defenses intercepted and destroyed three ballistic missiles launched toward Khamis Mushayt in Asir, according to Maj. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki, spokesman for the Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen.

Al-Maliki said coalition forces intercepted and destroyed one ballistic missile targeting the city at about 3 a.m., shortly after intercepting two others aimed at the same area. Four Houthi drones were also reportedly intercepted.

Separately, Saudi Civil Defense said a Houthi projectile struck a school in Najran on Friday, causing material damage but no casualties.

The incidents came amid an escalation in Houthi missile and drone attacks targeting Saudi cities and energy infrastructure.

The UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan on Thursday condemned an attack on Madinah, while the Gulf Cooperation Council reaffirmed its solidarity with Saudi Arabia and said the security of the Kingdom and its holy sites was integral to the collective security of GCC member states.

Yemeni forces report 474 operations against Houthis

Meanwhile, Yemen’s armed forces said they had carried out 474 airstrikes and precision-targeting operations against Houthi positions, movements, reinforcements and military capabilities during the previous 24 hours.

The operations involved warplanes, drones, artillery, missiles and rocket launchers across several fronts, including areas south of Haradh, the coast, Kattaf, Marib, Al-Bayda, Lahj, Sanaa and Saada.

The forces said operations were particularly concentrated on the Taiz fronts, where they targeted Houthi gatherings and reinforcements, sources of threats, command-and-control centers and other military capabilities.

According to the statement, the operations killed or wounded 1,540 Houthi personnel, most of them on the Taiz fronts, and destroyed or disabled 216 military vehicles and other military capabilities.

The operations also disrupted Houthi efforts to make a breakthrough on the Taiz fronts, the statement said.

The Yemeni armed forces said they would continue operations aimed at restoring state authority and protecting Yemen’s security and sovereignty.

The Houthis control Yemen’s most populous areas and much of the country’s north. They have intensified missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia in recent weeks, including strikes against cities and energy infrastructure, while also targeting Saudi-linked shipping in the Red Sea.

The escalation has heightened concerns over the security of Saudi population centers and energy infrastructure and added pressure to global oil supplies amid the US-Israeli war on Iran. It has also increased risks to the Red Sea route for Gulf energy exports as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains largely disrupted.