Saudi Arabia intercepts Houthi missiles as Yemen fighting escalates

Saudi Arabia's air defences intercepted six ballistic missiles launched by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi movement on Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition said, foiling attacks on the southern province of Taif and the Yanbu area on the Red Sea.

There was no immediate word on damage or casualties in either location. Yanbu is the main alternative route for Saudi oil exports, and the attack came as prospects improved for shipments to resume from the terminal after operations restarted on the East-West pipeline. The pipeline had been shut on September 11 following drone strikes that Riyadh blamed on Iraqi militia.

A widespread emergency alert was issued for areas including Jeddah and the holy city of Mecca, while civil defence authorities also warned of potential danger in the northwestern province of Tabuk, near the border with Jordan — a first for that area during the latest escalation this month. The Houthis have largely targeted southern parts of the kingdom.

The coalition said any escalation or violations by the "terrorist Houthi militia" would be met with a firm response.

The Houthis have stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia since declaring a naval blockade against it in July. They also seized Yemen's entire western coast in a lightning offensive nearly two weeks ago, bringing them to the shores of the strategic Bab el-Mandeb waterway.

Earlier, government sources said forces loyal to the Riyadh-backed administration had repelled overnight Houthi attacks on a key supply route to the southern port city of Aden, where the internationally recognised government is based. The Houthis have kept up pressure on government forces seeking to consolidate their power through a steep, winding mountain pass known as Hejat al-Abd.

The road is a lifeline for forces fighting on behalf of Yemen's government, which has been hemmed in by the Houthis. It is also critical for goods entering Taiz, Yemen's third-largest city, and its southern and western rural areas, and is the only route for residents seeking to travel abroad, with no commercial flights operating from Houthi-controlled areas.

Seizing parts of the Taiz-Aden road could allow the Houthis to tighten their grip around Taiz and deal another blow to the government, which has struggled to regain the initiative since losing the western coast.

The fighting is the latest episode in 12 years of civil war in Yemen, which had largely been frozen since a 2022 truce. The Houthis seized the capital Sanaa in 2014, prompting a Saudi-led military intervention the following year in support of the internationally recognised government. Fighting has flared along several old front lines in recent weeks, including around Taiz, as the Houthis swept south along Yemen's Red Sea coast.

More than 700 people have been killed and thousands wounded in the latest fighting, according to the United Nations. Nearly 130,000 Yemenis have been displaced within the country, while more than 3,000 have fled by boat across the Red Sea to Africa.