RIYADH, October 26 (Aalimi Nation) – The Saudi-led coalition said on Monday that its forces had destroyed Houthi ballistic missile launchers and storage tunnels in Yemen, the latest escalation in a conflict that has again reached Saudi territory. The Houthis, who control Sanaa, said they had struck back at Riyadh's main airport and other targets.
Coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki said the operation was "aimed at neutralising sources of threat". According to his account, coalition forces destroyed four ballistic missile launchers and five tunnels that the Houthis used to store missiles, and also attacked a missile depot.
He said the operation focused on cutting supply lines between areas under Houthi control. The coalition also targeted fortifications, gatherings of fighters and military equipment along front lines inside Yemen, he said. Al-Maliki added that the coalition would continue to use "deterrent operational measures" against Houthi attacks.
Explosions were reported in the Yemeni capital Sanaa and along the Red Sea coast. Media run by the Houthis said strikes had hit a solar power system and a water well, but offered no evidence. Neither the coalition's account of the damage nor the Houthi claims could be independently verified.
The Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah, said they had fired a ballistic missile at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and attacked Saudi oil pumping stations with drones. Their military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said Houthi forces also hit positions and weapons depots in Salah al-Din in Aden governorate and al-Wahat in Lahij governorate.
Al-Maliki said Saudi air defences intercepted and destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile fired towards Riyadh on Monday. He said defences had intercepted at least 10 ballistic missiles on Sunday. Saudi civil defence said two people were injured in the south by falling debris, and that buildings and vehicles were damaged.
The Yemeni government accused the Houthis of targeting camps for displaced people near Aden, without presenting evidence.
The Houthis ousted Yemen's internationally recognised government from Sanaa in 2014. Saudi Arabia intervened the following year at the head of a coalition aimed at restoring that government. A 2022 truce that had halted most of the fighting collapsed last month, after which the Houthis launched a rapid offensive and seized much of the Red Sea coast from government forces, officials and reports said.
The fighting has since spread to Saudi infrastructure. An earlier Houthi attack on the Riyadh airport this month killed 13 people and wounded more than 300, the deadliest attack on the kingdom in more than a decade, according to reports. The assault temporarily closed the airport and led to the postponement of Saudi Arabia's flagship investment conference until 2027. Flights resumed on Sunday, even as the Houthis warned travellers to avoid the airport, which they described as a "military target".
Yemeni government forces have also launched a counteroffensive, "Operation Yemen Dawn", this month.
There was no immediate sign of de-escalation. The coalition has signalled it will keep using force against Houthi military capabilities. The Houthis announced a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia in the summer, and the fighting has raised concern over the safety of civilians and shipping along the Red Sea. Independent confirmation of casualties and damage from Monday's strikes was not immediately available.
