Saudi air defenses intercept Houthi ballistic missile threat targeting southern region

RIYADH — Saudi air defenses intercepted a ballistic missile threat launched by Yemen's Houthi militia toward the Kingdom's southern region, the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen announced on Monday.Coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki said Saudi air defenses successfully engaged ballistic missiles fired by the Iran-backed Houthi militia toward southern Saudi Arabia.The attack is condidered a flagrant violation of ceasefire agreements and another example of the militia's continued breaches of international law through attacks targeting civilians, civilian infrastructure, and vital facilities in the Kingdom.Earlier this month, the coalition said Houthi threats against Saudi Arabia were aimed at diverting attention from the militia's violations against the Yemeni people and its worsening economic and humanitarian situation.The coalition reiterated that it would respond with "firmness and unprecedented force" to any attempts to target Saudi Arabia, its citizens, national assets, or violate Yemen's sovereignty, in accordance with international humanitarian law.Al-Maliki said the Houthis continue to reject peace initiatives, including a Saudi-backed roadmap accepted by Yemen's internationally recognized government, while escalating attacks against international shipping in the Red Sea and the Bab Al-Mandab Strait.He also accused the militia of endangering Yemen's infrastructure by exposing ports, airports, power stations, factories, and other economic assets to destruction.The coalition said Saudi Arabia, together with its international partners, remains committed to supporting efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Yemeni people and advance a comprehensive political solution to the conflict.