The key facts

  • One drone was intercepted over Riyadh, the other over the Eastern Province
  • No details about the drones or the damage are yet available
  • According to the UN, 12,000 people have been killed or wounded since July

Interceptions over Riyadh and the Eastern Province

The Saudi Arabia-led coalition said on Thursday that it had intercepted and destroyed two droneslaunched by Yemen's Houthi group. According to coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki, who made the announcement on the social network X, one drone was intercepted over the Riyadh area and the other over the Eastern Province. The Anadolu agency reported this.

Context of the conflict

No further details about the drones or the damage caused were immediately available. According to UN figures cited by Anadolu, fighting between Yemeni government forces and the Houthis resumed in July and, according to the organization's reports, has resulted in 12,000 people killed or wounded. The resumption of hostilities ended a period of relative calm that had lasted since April 2022 and has deepened the humanitarian crisis in the country amid ongoing clashes and population displacement. The conflict in Yemen has continued since September 2014, when the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, and a number of provinces; the Saudi Arabia-led coalition intervened in March 2015 in support of the Yemeni government.