RIYADH — The Saudi-led coalition said early Saturday it had intercepted two Houthi drones headed for Riyadh and two ballistic missiles headed for Khamis Mushait, a city home to a major air base, in the latest escalation of the Yemen conflict.
Civil-defense alerts were sent overnight to residents of Khamis Mushait and Abha, according to the coalition statement reported by Reuters.
The Iran-backed Houthis have been attacking Saudi Arabia since declaring a naval blockade in July, targeting cities, energy infrastructure and Red Sea shipping — adding pressure on oil supplies already strained by the war with Iran and the blocked Strait of Hormuz.
Hours before the interceptions, the military chiefs of Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey met in Riyadh under the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement signed last month. Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman affirmed joint defense efforts alongside Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir.
The United Nations says more than 122,000 people have been displaced by the Yemen escalation. Between Aug. 6 and Sept. 18, 674 people were killed and 2,998 injured, according to U.N. figures.
The escalation threatens the main alternative oil-export route out of the Gulf and is pulling Turkey and Pakistan deeper into a collective-defense pact with Riyadh.