Yemen’s Houthi group said on Wednesday it launched missiles and drones at Abha International Airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia, vowing revenge for an airstrike earlier that day on Sanaa International Airport, the capital.
This marks the first time the Houthis have claimed an attack on Saudi soil since an informal ceasefire took effect in March 2022, shattering four years of relative quiet between the kingdom and the Iran-backed rebels, according to reports.
Brigadier General Turki al-Maliki, spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition, said on social media that air defenses intercepted a missile attack from the Houthis targeting the southern region of the kingdom.
Screenshot showing the Houthi retaliation against Saudi Arabia
Earlier, the Houthi-controlled Sanaa International Airport was hit by an airstrike. The group accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out the attack and vowed to retaliate. Yemen’s internationally recognized government, however, said its armed forces targeted the airport runway to prevent a high-level Houthi delegation—who had just attended the memorial for Iran’s late Supreme Leader—from returning home on an Iranian plane.
According to sources, the Houthi delegation was scheduled to arrive at Sanaa airport around noon on Wednesday via an Iranian flight. Just before the airstrike, the Iranian aircraft carrying the delegation had “just entered Yemeni airspace and was heading toward Sanaa.”
Latest reports indicate that after the attack on Sanaa airport, the plane landed at Hodeidah International Airport, which is under Houthi control.
Yemen’s government had previously demanded that the Houthi delegation return on a non-Iranian aircraft under government supervision. The Houthis rejected this, warning Saudi Arabia and the Yemeni government not to intercept the flight.
Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, issued a statement on Wednesday accusing the Houthis of receiving a flight from Iran, saying it bypassed Yemen’s state institutions and civil aviation regulations, undermining de-escalation efforts. Alimi noted that the government had previously proposed resuming civilian flights at Sanaa airport through Yemen Airways and arranging for personnel to travel between Tehran and Sanaa on Yemeni-operated flights, but the Houthis refused.
Yemen’s government has had no diplomatic ties with Iran since 2015, but the Houthis, a key part of the regional “Axis of Resistance,” maintain close ties and cooperation with Tehran.
Reports suggest that Saudi Arabia, with its larger territory compared to smaller Gulf states, has been more resilient in conflict, managing to continue oil exports via a pipeline from the east to the Red Sea’s western coast, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.
The Houthis have previously attacked Red Sea shipping, and if a broader conflict erupts, this Saudi advantage could face threats.