RIYADH – Saudi forces intercepted seven Yemeni rebel missiles on Sunday,including over the capital Riyadh, in a deadly escalation on the eve of thethird anniversary of the Saudi-led coalition’s intervention in Yemenlink>.
One Egyptian was killed and two of his countrymen were wounded by fallingshrapnel in Riyadh, authorities said, with residents reporting loudexplosions and bright flashes in the sky shortly before midnight.
The Huthi rebels fired three missiles at Riyadh and four others at thesouthern cities of Khamis Mushait, Jizan and Najran, with the coalitionsaying they all targeted populated areas.
“This aggressive and hostile action by the Iran-backed Huthi group provesthat the Iranian regime continues to support the armed group with militarycapabilities,” coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said.
“The firing of multiple ballistic missiles towards cities is a seriousdevelopment.”
The Huthi-run Al-Masira television channel claimed the rebels had targetedRiyadh’s King Khalid International Airport as well as other airstrips inthe south of the kingdom.
The strikes come after the US defence secretary last week urged Saudi CrownPrince Mohammed bin Salman during his visit to Washington to pursue “urgentefforts” to end Yemen’s wrenching conflict.
The Huthi rebels have fired dozens of missiles into Saudi Arabia since lastyear, all of which Saudi forces claim to have intercepted, underscoringtheir capacity to strike deep within the kingdom amid a stalemated war inYemen.
The latest attack could further escalate the coalition’s military campaign.
A major attack targeting Riyadh international airport on November 4triggered the tightening of a longstanding Saudi-led blockade of Yemen —already on the verge of famine.
Another strike on December 19 targeted Riyadh’s Yamamah palace, theofficial residence of King Salman.
*Humanitarian crisis*
Saudi Arabia has accused its arch foe Iran of supplying the missiles to therebels, a charge Tehran strongly denied.
The Huthis expelled pro-government forces from the capital in September2014 and went on to seize swathes of the impoverished Arabian peninsulacountry.
This prompted a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia to intervene inYemen on March 26, 2015, to help the government push back the Shia rebels.
Since then, around 10,000 people have been killed and 53,000 wounded inYemen, triggering what the United Nations has called the world’s worsthumanitarian crisis.
Huthi rebel chief Abdelmalik al-Huthi on Sunday said his fighters wereready to make more “sacrifices” against the Saudi-led coalition, in anaddress marking the war’s third anniversary.
The Huthis plan a huge rally in Sanaa on Monday to mark the anniversary.
The UN says living conditions in the war-scarred country have reachedcatastrophic levels and that 8.4 million people face imminent famine.
The UN urgently needs $350 million for humanitarian projects in Yemen, asenior agency official said on Sunday, insisting it was mere “peanuts”compared with the cost of the country’s war.
Saudi Arabia and its allies — aided by billions of dollars worth ofmilitary equipment from the US and Britain — could stand guilty of warcrimes, Amnesty International said on Friday.
Numerous rounds of UN-sponsored peace talks have failed to stem thebloodshed in Yemen. – APP/AFP