Saudi-led coalition intercepts, destroys Houthi ballistic missile targeting Riyadh

The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said Wednesday that it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthi group toward the Saudi capital Riyadh, shortly after warning alerts were activated in the city and nearby Al-Kharj governorate.

In a statement on US social media platform X, Coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki said the missile had been fired toward Riyadh by the Houthis.

Earlier, Saudi Arabia's Civil Defense said alerts were issued in Riyadh and Al-Kharj governorate, southeast of the capital, warning residents of potential danger.

In subsequent notifications, the agency announced that the danger had passed in both locations.

Witnesses said sounds of four explosions were heard in Riyadh after the warning.

Saudi Arabia has faced a series of missile and drone attacks amid escalating hostilities with Yemen’s Houthi group.

Early Wednesday, Saudi authorities said four people were injured and 15 houses sustained minor damage after debris from two intercepted cruise missiles fell in Riyadh on Tuesday.

The Saudi-led coalition also announced that it had intercepted and destroyed a cruise missile in Al-Kharj, while an attack on an administrative building belonging to state oil company Aramco sparked a small fire in the eastern city of Dhahran.

On Tuesday, the Houthis threatened to target Aramco's headquarters in Dammam, Riyadh's main airport and the company's refinery in the capital in response to any Saudi-led coalition attacks on the group's positions in Yemen's capital Sanaa.

Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition supporting Yemen's internationally recognized government since 2015 against the Houthis, who have controlled Sanaa and several other provinces since 2014. The current escalation started in July after a 2022 truce collapsed.