The Houthi rebels of Yemen say they have hit an “important target” in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh using a ballistic missile and drone.
The Saudi-led coalition, which has been at war with the Iran-backed group since 2015, did not confirm the attack on Riyadh, but said it destroyed several ballistic missiles and explosive drones launched toward the state on Thursday .
A spokesman for the Houthi army, Yahia Saraya, said on Thursday the group used a Dul-Fakkar ballistic missile and three Samad-3 drones in a Dawa attack at an unknown site.
“The attack is a response to the permanent escalation of the enemy and the ongoing blockade against our country,” Saria said in a statement posted on Twitter.
He promised more attacks if Saudi Arabia “continued its aggression” in Yemen.
A spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition said that the Houthi forces launched missiles and drones at civilian bases in Saudi Arabia, without giving more details.
Conflict conflict
Earlier on Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition said it had armies Drones equipped with explosives loaded by hosers were destroyed by the Houthis in the border town of Nazran.
In a statement published by the Saudi Press Agency, coalition spokesman Turk al-Maliki said the drone targeted the civilian population and facilities in the southern Saudi city.
The coalition said that since Friday it has destroyed at least six explosive-laden drones targeting the southern regions of the state.
Yemen has ceased to be in conflict since 2014 when the Houthis occupied most of the north of the country, including the capital Sanaa.
The Saudi Arabia-led coalition intervened in March 2015 to reinstate the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansoor Hadi.
Within months, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and their allies on the ground pushed the Houthis from southern Yemen towards their northern heart.
The war killed more than 100,000 people and caused widespread destruction, By pushing Yemen, already one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, to the brink of famine.
The United Nations has called Yemen the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
Al Jazeera and news agencies
.