Arab Coalition thwart new Houthi militia drone attack

Saudi air defenses intercepted a Houthi militia drone targeting a southwestern city on Thursday, the Arab Coalition said, as cross-border attacks by the militia showed no let-up.

“The drone targeting civilians in the city of Khamis Mushait has been intercepted and destroyed,” coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki told the official Saudi Press Agency.

Maliki denied claims made by the Houthi on their Al-Masirah television that drones targeting the King Khaled airbase in Khamis Mushait had “achieved their goals precisely.”

“These are lies,” he said, calling the attack “another act by the militias that is akin to a war crime.”

The Houthis have stepped up missile and drone attacks across the border in recent weeks.

Nine civilians were wounded in a July 2 Houthi attack on Abha airport in the south of the kingdom, the coalition said.

A June 12 missile attack on the same airport wounded 26 civilians, drawing warnings of “stern action” from the coalition.

And on June 23, an attack on Abha airport killed a Syrian and wounded 21 other civilians, the coalition said.

The raids come amid heightened regional tensions as key Saudi ally the United States presses a “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran after withdrawing from a landmark 2015 nuclear deal between major powers and Tehran.