Riyadh: One person was killed and two others injured in a ballistic missile attack launched from Yemen over Riyadh in Saudi Arabia by Houthi rebels, Saudi civil defence said.
The spokesman of Riyadh civil defence said in a statement, “A missile’s shrapnel fell on a residential house in Riyadh, which led to the death of one person and injury of two others. They are all from Egypt.”
Saudi Arabian state television said that the Houthis fired two missiles toward the country late Sunday and the Saudi air defence forces succeeded in intercepting one over Riyadh, and another over Jazan in the Saudi Arabian border with Yemen, Xinhua reported.
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Citizens in Riyadh said that loud explosions were heard.
This is not the first time that Houthis have fired missiles towards Saudi Arabia.
In November last year, the Saudi air defence shot down a ballistic missile fired by Houthis at Riyadh International airport.
In December, the Houthis fired a ballistic missile toward the Saudi royal palace in Riyadh.
Continued missile attacks from Houthi rebels in Yemen have forced Saudi Arabia to cut off air, sea and land links from its neighbour. Saudi defence forces have also halted Yemen’s financial aids and food and fuel imports as well.
Former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh was killed in Sanaa after days of intense fighting between Houthi rebels and his loyalist forces on December 4. Before killing Saleh, Houthi rebels had reportedly blown up his residence.
Both Saleh forces and the Houthi rebels, the latter who is backed by Iran are battling to capture the capital city. The loyalists of Saleh last week had proposed for the talks with the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis to end the three-year conflict in Yemen.
The conflict in Yemen, which began in 2014, has claimed more than 100,000 lives so far. Saleh was overthrown in the ensuing conflict and had reportedly fled to Saudi Arabia for a while.
The fighting further intensified in 2015, when clashes broke out between Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi’s government forces and Saleh loyalist forces.
The Saudi-led coalition forces, which is backed by the United States, has interfered in the conflict upon Hadi’s request since then, and are carrying out regular airstrikes against the Houthi rebels.
(With ANI inputs)