Riyadh-bound Houthi missiles intercepted, coalition says

The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen's Houthis said Thursday that its forces intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles fired by the group toward Riyadh, hours after multiple explosions were heard in the Saudi capital.

“We intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles launched by the terrorist Houthi militia towards Riyadh,” coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki said in a statement.

The coalition statement followed a Houthi claim earlier Thursday that the group had fired a ballistic missile at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and disrupted operations. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said on X that the missile “accurately struck its target” and warned international airlines against continuing to operate flights through Saudi airspace.

The coalition gave a different account of the attack's outcome, saying two ballistic missiles fired at the Saudi capital were intercepted.

The claim came during an escalating round of fighting. The Houthis control much of Yemen's northwest and are fighting the Riyadh-backed internationally recognised government for territory after the civil war reignited in July.