RIYADH/SANAA, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- The Saudi-led coalition said Friday that it had intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles and two drones launched by Yemen's Houthi group toward Saudi Arabia, while Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported Saudi warplanes carried out a series of airstrikes on Houthi-held areas in Yemen.
Coalition spokesman Turki Al-Maliki said in the afternoon on X that Saudi air defenses intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis toward Khamis Mushait in the southwest.
Earlier in the day, the coalition said it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis toward the Saudi capital, Riyadh, as well as two Houthi drones toward the southern region.
Houthi-run al-Masirah TV on Friday reported continued Saudi airstrikes on Houthi-controlled areas, saying three people were killed and nine others injured near the Houthi-held Yemeni capital, Sanaa.
The broadcaster said the casualties occurred when airstrikes "hit a house" in Nihm district, northeast of Sanaa. Citing a local Houthi security official, it said all 12 victims were members of the same family.
Airstrikes were also reported in the northern province of Saada, the western Red Sea province of Hodeidah, and areas in the southwestern province of Taiz, including the port city of Mocha, reported al-Masirah.
The broadcaster also cited a Houthi military source as saying Saudi aircraft struck a lighthouse on Mayyun Island in the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
There was no immediate comment from the Saudi-led coalition and the casualties could not be independently verified.
The exchange of strikes came amid an escalation in the conflict, with Saudi warplanes carrying out strikes deep inside Houthi-held territory and the Houthis launching repeated missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia.
Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and much of the country's north, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene the following year in support of the internationally recognized Yemeni government. ■
