Saudi-led coalition retaliates after Huthi rebels stepped up cross-border missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia
Saudi-led coalition starts military operation against Yemen’s Huthis
Saudi state TV says Saudi-led coalition has launched air strikes on Sanaa, Marib, al-Jouf, al-Bayda, Hajjah, Saada provinces to neutralise Iran-backed Huthis’ military capabilities.
Wednesday 01/07/2020
Saudi-led coalition retaliates after Huthi rebels stepped up cross-border missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia
DUBAI - The Saudi-led coalition has started a military operation against the Yemeni Huthi movement after it stepped up cross-border missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, state television reported on Wednesday.
In Yemen, Huthi-run Al Masirah TV reported coalition air strikes on the capital Sanaa, Marib, al-Jouf, al-Bayda, Hajjah and Saada provinces on Wednesday.
The coalition, which has been battling the Iran-aligned movement for five years, will hold a news conference on the operation against Huthi targets that aims to neutralise its military capabilities, Al-Ekhbariya channel and Saudi-owned Al Arabiya TV said.
Last week, Huthi fighters fired missiles that reached the Saudi capital Riyadh in the first such assault since a six-week ceasefire prompted by the coronavirus epidemic expired in late May. The coalition said it intercepted the attack.
The alliance intervened in Yemen in March 2015 after the Huthis ousted the Saudi-backed government from the capital, Sanaa, in late 2014. The Huthis say they are fighting a corrupt system.
The conflict is largely seen in the region as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran.