Saudi Arabia intercepts missile fired by Yemen rebels

RIYADH: Saudi air defence forces on Saturday intercepted a ballistic missile fired by Yemen's Huthi rebels at the kingdom's southern city of Najran, state media reported. State-run Al-Ekhbariya television gave no further details but did not report any casualties or damage from the missile. Yemen's Saba news agency, run by the Iran-backed Huthis, said the missile had been fired at a Saudi National Guard base in Najran, just over the border from Yemen where a Saudi-led coalition has intervened against the insurgents. Saba said the attack had caused deaths among Saudi forces but provided no details. The coalition on Thursday said it intercepted another missile fired by the Huthis at the southern city of Jazan -- the latest in a series of such attacks that have drawn widespread condemnation. The UN Security Council this week condemned "in the strongest possible terms" multiple missile attacks launched by the Huthis on Saudi territory, saying they posed a threat to regional security. In one of the biggest such attacks yet, Saudi forces last weekend said they intercepted seven missiles fired by rebels toward cities including Riyadh, killing one person. The coalition intervened in Yemen in 2015 to push back the Huthis who captured the capital Sanaa and forced the government into exile. Riyadh has accused arch-rival Tehran of providing the missiles and threatened retaliation against Iran. Tehran denies the charge. Source: The New Indian Express