SANAA/RIYADH, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group said Thursday it had launched a drone attack on an international airport in eastern Saudi Arabia, while the Saudi-led coalition claimed interception of a ballistic missile and a drone launched toward Saudi territory.
In a statement posted on social media platform X, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said a drone targeted King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, claiming the attack achieved its objective and disrupted flight operations.
The claim could not be independently verified, and there was no immediate confirmation from Saudi authorities.
He also rejected what he described as a Saudi claim that a missile had been intercepted over the holy city of Medina, insisting that Houthi operations targeted only Saudi oil facilities and military bases.
The Saudi-led coalition announced on Thursday that it had intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthi group towards the Medina region, as well as a drone over the Eastern Province.
Coalition spokesman Turki Al-Maliki said on social media platform X on Thursday evening that coalition forces had intercepted and destroyed a drone over the Eastern Province.
In a separate announcement in the afternoon, he said the air defence forces had intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis towards the Medina region.
Recent weeks have seen escalating cross-border hostilities between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia, with Saudi strikes hitting Houthi-held areas in Yemen and the Houthis launching missiles and drones toward Saudi Arabia.
Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, prompting the Saudi-led coalition to intervene in 2015 in support of the Yemeni government. ■
