Saudi Arabia downs Yemeni rebel missile: state media
Saudi Arabia said its air defences on Friday intercepted a missile fired by Yemeni rebels.
RIYADH (AFP) - Saudi Arabia said its air defences on Friday intercepted a missile fired by Yemeni rebels, days after the insurgents second-in-command was killed in an air raid by Riyadh and its allies.
The ballistic missile, the latest in a series of similar attacks, was headed towards the kingdom s southern coastal city of Jizan, the official state news agency said. No casualties were reported.
Saudi Arabia launched a military coalition in 2015 to battle the Huthi rebels in its southern neighbour and restore the internationally-recognised Yemeni government to power.
The Huthis control Yemen s capital, Sanaa, as well as much of Yemen s north and the key Hodeida port on the country s western coastline.
Riyadh on Wednesday confirmed it was behind an air strike on the Yemeni capital that killed Saleh al-Sammad, president of the Huthis Supreme Political Council, on April 19.
The rebels will hold a public funeral for Sammad in Sanaa on Saturday.
Nearly 10,000 people have been killed since the Saudi-led alliance joined the Yemen conflict, triggering what the United Nations has called the world s worst humanitarian crisis.
Yemen now stands at the brink of famine.
The alliance imposed a total blockade on Yemen s ports in November in retaliation for the rebel missile attacks. The blockade has since been partially lifted, but access to the impoverished country remains limited.
