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20-09-2026
SANA’A/ RIYADH: Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen say they carried out drone and ballistic missile attacks on the Saudi capital Riyadh, as well as energy sites on the country’s Red Sea coast.
Saudi authorities said they intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile fired at Riyadh on Saturday, without confirming any further strikes or causalities.
Earlier, a column of black smoke was seen rising from fuel tanks near the Saudi capital’s international airport, where flights were disrupted temporarily on Saturday.
Air raid alerts had sounded in the capital for the first time since the Iran-backed Houthis increased their attacks on Saudi Arabia in July.
The US state department urged Americans in the Middle East to “exercise vigilance and be prepared for potential flight cancellations and other travel disruptions”.
“Iranian-supported Houthis have engaged in hostilities against Saudi Arabia, including civilian airports. This military conflict has the potential to escalate rapidly,” it said in a statement.
It added that Americans “should seriously reconsider travel to and through the region”.
Air defences also stopped “hostile attempts to target civilians” in the cities of Bish, Taif, Farasan and Yanbu, an official spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition said in a statement.
In a statement posted online, Houthi military spokesman Yahya al-Sarea said a “large number of ballistic and cruise missiles and drones” had been used to attack “sensitive sites” in Riyadh and Aramco state oil and gas company facilities in Yanbu on the coast.
He added that the attacks were “in response to the Saudi enemy’s criminal attempts” to target the Yemeni capital Sanaa, which is currently controlled by the Houthis. (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
