Royal Saudi Arabia Air Defense forces have shot down a ballistic missile near the border of Yemen over the southern province of Najran on Thursday, reports Arab News.
Yemen’s Shiite rebels say they fired the missile targeting a special forces camp and a facility for helicopter gunships in the Saudi border province of Najran.
The media arm of the rebels, known as the Houthis, said Thursday’s projectile was a Qaher 2-M ballistic missile.
This is fresh | #Saudi Defense Forces successfully intercept ballistic missile shot by #Iran backed #houthis towards #Najran – Saudi town at #Yemen border @a_albander
pic.twitter.com/5tgTGEMzgl— حسن سجواني ???????? (@HSajwanization) January 12, 2018
A message to every enemy, hater, and a traitor – a Saudi plane continues confidently between the 2 missile intercepts in #Najran – great work by #Saudi Royal Air Defense ????????????
#اعتراض_صاروخ_بنجران pic.twitter.com/C7P5Tm4Vzn— حسن سجواني ???????? (@HSajwanization) January 12, 2018
Coloniel Al-Maliki of the Saudi-led coalition confirmed that the missile had been fired towards Najran at a populated civilian area before being intercepted, adding that there was no loss of life or casualties.
Thursday’s missile launch comes approximately a month after reports emerged of a December3rd firing of a cruise missile by Yemeni Houthi rebels toward a nuclear power plant under construction in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. The cruise missile has been identified as a “Soumar” missile, an Iranian-modified version of the Soviet-made Kh-55 cruise missile. With an operational range of 2500 km, the Kh-55s are equipped with guidance systems that allow them to maintain an altitude lower than 110 meters from the ground, thereby avoiding radar detection.
Local Yemeni sources confirmed that the cruise missile did not hit the target, having crashed in the northern Yemeni province of al-Jawf. The UAE stated that it possesses an air defense system capable of dealing with any threat of any type or kind, adding that the nuclear power plant in Abu Dhabi was well-protected, state news agency WAM reported on its Twitter account. The crash reasons are still unclear, but most likely it was a technical failure. (South Front)
And on November 30 ballistic missile launch from Yemen, also reportedly intercepted by Saudi air defense forces in the southern city of Khamis Mushait in the south western province of Assir.
The missile attack was the second in November, with the first one intercepted near King khalid International Airport in Riyadh.
Notably, Huthi TV claimed that the missile “hit the target”…
Huthi rebels fired a ballistic missile today that hit a military target in Saudi Arabia, rebel media in Yemen said, after the leader of the group threatened Riyadh with retaliation over a blockade.
“We confirm the success of our ballistic missile trial, which hit its military target inside Saudi Arabia,” the Huthi-run Al-Masira television channel said.
Earlier, rebel chief Abdulmalik al-Huthi warned against “prolonging the blockade” imposed on Yemen following a November 4 Huthi missile attack that was intercepted near Riyadh international airport.
Arab news reports that Houthi aggression toward Saudi Arabia has increased in recent months, causing “a global outcry with a number of countries and organizations condemning the launch of ballistic missiles targeting the Kingdom.”
The same outlet also claims that “Houthi militias have threatened to cut off Red Sea shipping routes, with Yemeni minister Abdul-Raqib Fat’h calling it a “flagrant” challenge to the rule of law.”
Saudi-led coalition forces and their Yemeni allies last year regained control of several strategic ports, waging an assault against the Houthis. The Saudi Navy has also engaged in numerous mine-sweeping missions on Yemeni shores, amid warnings over explosives planted by the militias.
