Yemeni Houthis launch drone attack on Saudi airport

On Sunday the Houthi rebels of Yemen launched an attack with drones loaded with explosives against Abha airport in southwest Saudi Arabia, although the Saudi-led coalition led by Riyadh claimed it managed to intercept the drones. "The Air Force carried out an extensive attack on Abha International Airport with several drones targeting military positions and sensitive targets, and the impact was precise," Huthian military spokesman Yehia Sarea said on his official Twitter account.  

He also stated that the action took place in response to "the continuous air escalation" and "the siege of our country", alluding to the intervention of the Arab alliance in Yemen in favour of the internationally recognised government and against the Houthis. For his part, the spokesman for the coalition, Turki al-Maliki, stated that “Joint Coalition forces intercepted and destroyed this evening (Friday) a bomb-laden UAV while in Yemeni airspace, which was launched by the terrorist, Iran-backed Houthi militia towards the Kingdom.” 

In a statement issued by the Saudi state agency SPA, Al-Maliki condemned the action of the Houthis "to deliberately and systematically target civilians and civilian objects.” The conflict in Yemen erupted in 2014 when the Houthis conquered large areas in the north and west of the country, and intensified in 2015 after the expulsion of the internationally recognised president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur al-Hadi, from Sana'a and with the intervention of the Arab coalition.  The Houthis have claimed responsibility for numerous missile and drone attacks against Saudi Arabia, one of the most significant last year against two plants of the state oil company Aramco, which led to the suspension of 50 percent of Saudi oil production, though Riyadh denied responsibility and pointed the finger at Iran.