Saudi Arabia briefly issues threat alerts for 2 southwestern cities

Brief alerts were issued in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern cities of Jizan and Najran to warn of a “potential danger,” the Saudi Civil Defence announced on Saturday.

“The danger has passed in Najran City,” the civil defence wrote on the US social media platform X, several minutes after issuing the alert.

It called on people to follow official instructions and to “avoid gathering and filming.”

Earlier Saturday, the Saudi Civil Defence issued a similar warning for the city of Jizan before announcing that the danger was over.

The alerts came as Houthi missile and drone attacks continue to target Saudi territory amid an ongoing military escalation in neighbouring Yemen.

Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition supporting Yemen’s internationally recognised government since 2015 in its fight against the Houthis, who have controlled Sanaa and several other provinces since 2014.

The current escalation began in July after a period of relative calm following a UN-brokered truce that started in April 2022.

Saudi-led coalition says it intercepted Houthi cruise missile over Riyadh

The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said on Saturday that its air defences intercepted and destroyed a cruise missile launched by the Houthis toward Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh region.

“Air defences intercepted and destroyed a cruise missile launched by the terrorist Houthi militia toward the Riyadh region,” coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Maliki said on social media platform X.

Yemeni army claims it recaptured areas in Taiz as Houthi missile kills, wounds dozens

The Yemeni army said on Friday that it recaptured several areas in the southwestern Taiz province during fierce clashes with the Houthis, as the Defence Ministry accused the group of firing a ballistic missile at a popular market, killing and wounding dozens of civilians.

The army said forces backed by the Popular Resistance recaptured Al-Nidani village, Shaab Al-Sarari and large parts of the Sanamat area, as well as the Ribat Al-Qarn area in Dhi al-Barh.

Fighting continued on the Saber front, while government forces imposed a siege on entrances to the Al-Sarari area, according to the military.

The army said the Houthis suffered heavy losses in personnel and equipment, while government forces were consolidating positions in recaptured areas and clearing mines.