ADEN, Yemen, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group launched four ballistic missiles at Al-Rayan International Airport in the county's southeastern province of Hadramout on Wednesday, triggering powerful explosions at the facility, while the group said they targeted military equipment at the airport.
A local security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Xinhua that the missiles struck the Al-Rayan airport in Mukalla, the provincial capital, sending plumes of smoke into the air.
Mukalla is the capital city of Yemen's largest governorate Hadhramaut, and a major commercial and port city on Yemen's Arabian Sea coast. Al-Rayan International Airport serves as the main air gateway for the city and surrounding areas of the vast oil-rich province.
The extent of damage was not immediately clear, and there were no confirmed reports of casualties.
Residents in Mukalla told Xinhua they heard a series of powerful explosions from the direction of the airport.
Meanwhile, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on social media platform X, saying Houthi forces had carried out an operation targeting military equipment at Al-Rayan airport.
Sarea alleged that "Saudi Arabia had transported the equipment to the airport aboard military cargo aircraft." He accused Saudi forces of using the civilian airport for military purposes, but provided no evidence.
The spokesperson also warned Saudi Arabia against using Yemeni civilian facilities for military purposes and threatened further consequences. Saudi Arabia or the Saudi-led coalition had not immediately commented on the Houthi claims.
Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and much of the country's north. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in 2015 in support of the internationally recognized Yemeni government. ■
