Saudi Arabia Downs Houthi Missiles and Drones as Fighting Intensifies

Saudi Arabia intercepted missiles and drones over its capital, Riyadh, and southern areas on Sunday, according to the Saudi-led coalition, as fighting with Yemen's Houthis showed no sign of easing.

Coalition spokesman Major-General Turki al-Maliki said forces destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile fired at Riyadh that morning, along with a drone over the Riyadh region and a cruise missile headed for the southwestern city of Khamis Mushait. Explosions were heard in the Saudi capital. The coalition later reported intercepting 10 more ballistic missiles fired toward southern Saudi Arabia.

The strikes came as two terminals at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh reopened. Operations there were halted on October 10 after a Houthi attack killed 13 people and wounded more than 300. Riyadh airport said late on Saturday that international flights would resume from Terminal 2 on Sunday, while Terminal 1 would handle domestic flights.

The Houthis, an armed group also known as Ansar Allah and aligned with Iran, quickly warned against using the airport. Military spokesman Yahya Saree said it remained "unsafe" and a "military target". He urged all international, regional and local airlines, as well as staff and travellers, to stay away, and said the Saudi government "shall bear the consequences of any operations at the airport."

On Saturday, the Houthis said they had targeted three Saudi airports, including one in Riyadh, as well as energy installations, a pipeline and an airbase. Saudi civil defence said it responded to falling debris in the Mecca and Medina regions after intercepting two Houthi missiles. The Houthis denied aiming at Mecca and Medina, two of Islam's holiest cities, and called the Saudi claim a "huge lie".

Inside Yemen, Houthi forces advanced on Jabal Sabr, the strategic mountain overlooking the city of Taiz, which has become the centre of fighting between the group and government forces. The Houthis have besieged the city and cut the main road to Aden, the interim capital of Yemen's internationally recognised government. The United Nations has warned that "time is running out" to deliver aid to the 800,000 people trapped in Taiz.

Government forces said they carried out more than 700 operations against Houthi targets on Saturday and claimed to have killed more than 300 fighters. Clashes have intensified on multiple fronts in recent weeks, deepening a humanitarian crisis.

The war escalated sharply last month when the Houthis seized strategic territory from forces loyal to the internationally recognised government along the Red Sea coast. The attacks on Saudi Arabia, which backs the government side, have hit the kingdom hard. As the world's largest crude oil exporter, it has seen disruption to its businesses, airlines and daily life, along with damage to its international image.