RIYADH, Feb 28, 2021 (BSS/AFP) – Loud explosions shook Riyadh on Saturday
as a Saudi-led military coalition said it thwarted a missile attack launched
by Yemen’s Huthi rebels, which sent debris raining down on civilian homes.
The Iran-backed Huthis have escalated attacks on the kingdom, while they
step up an offensive to seize the Saudi-backed Yemeni government’s last
northern stronghold of Marib.
The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted a Huthi ballistic missile
targeting Riyadh, according to the official SPA news agency.
Fragments of the missile scattered over several Riyadh neighbourhoods,
damaging at least one home but no casualties were reported, state-run Al-
Ekhbariya television said.
AFP correspondents in the Saudi capital reported hearing multiple loud
explosions. The night sky lit up with a bright flash following the
interception of a missile, state television footage showed.
Separately, the coalition said it intercepted six Huthi drones targeting
the kingdom, including the southern cities of Khamis Mushait and Jizan.
The rebels did not immediately claim responsibility for any of the attacks.
They frequently strike southern areas and have previously targeted Riyadh
with missiles and drones.
The assaults came as Saudi Arabia hosted a Formula E championship on the
outskirts of Riyadh, which state media said was attended by de facto ruler
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The Huthis have escalated cross-border attacks on the kingdom even after
the United States delisted the rebels as terrorists and stepped up efforts to
de-escalate the six-year conflict.
The designation, imposed by the administration of former US president
Donald Trump, had been widely criticised by aid organisations, who warned it
would hamper their efforts to alleviate a humanitarian crisis in Yemen.
US President Joe Biden halted support to Saudi offensive operations in
Yemen’s war, which he called a “catastrophe” that “has to end”. But he also
reiterated US support for Saudi Arabia in defending its territory.
Alongside the cross-border attacks, the Huthis are pressing ahead with a
deadly offensive to seize the Yemeni government stronghold of Marib, where
some of the country’s richest oil fields are found.
Years of bombings have failed to shake the rebels’ hold on the capital
Sanaa, and they have steadily expanded their reach in the country’s north.
Yemen’s grinding conflict has claimed tens of thousands of lives and
displaced millions, according to international organisations, sparking what
the UN calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.