Saudi-led coalition downs Yemen rebel drones, missiles

By Aziz al-Ahmadi, Ibrahim al-Khazin and Diana Shalhoub

SANAA (AA) - The Saudi-led coalition on Monday announced shooting down eight "booby-trapped" drones and four ballistic missiles launched by Yemen's Houthi rebels towards Saudi Arabia.

This came in two separate statements by the coalition spokesman, Col. Turki al-Maliki, and carried by the Saudi SPA news agency.

"Coalition forces intercepted and destroyed four ballistic missiles, and seven drones launched by the Houthis towards Saudi Arabia," al-Maliki said.

In another statement, the coalition spokesman announced "the interception and destruction of a [booby-trapped] drone, launched by the Houthis from Sanaa towards the kingdom."

For its part, the rebel group said in a statement: "We have accurately targeted the giant oil facility in Jizan, southern Saudi Arabia."

The group added it targeted military sites in several airports in south of the kingdom as a part of a wide operation.

Yemen has been beset by violence and chaos since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

The crisis escalated in 2015 when a Saudi-led military coalition launched a devastating air campaign aimed at rolling back Houthi territorial gains.

Tens of thousands of Yemenis, including civilians, are believed to have been killed in the conflict, which has led to the world’s worst humanitarian crisis as millions remain at risk of starvation.

* Writing by Mahmoud Barakat