Alwaght-Yemeni forces have launched a retaliatory ballistic missile attack targeting the Saudi capital Riyadh and inflicting damage on the city’s King Khalid International Airport.
A statement by Yemen’s official news agency, Saba, said, “The missile force of the army and popular forces fired on Saturday night a long-range ballistic missile Burkan H2 on king Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.”
An official at the missile force told Saba that the ballistic missile hit the target accurately. The Burkan 2-H is a scud-type missile with a range of more than 800km.
Yemen's Defense Ministry also confirmed the missile attack "shook the Saudi capital" and the operation was successful.
Al Masirah, a TV network run by the Yemen’s Ansarullah movement, also the attack on its social media account.
According to videos published on social media, smoke could be seen rising near Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport.
Meanwhile, Saudi air defense forces were quoted by local media claiming they intercepted a missile north-east of the capital. Saudi state-owned channel Al Ekhbariya TV claimed the missile was brought down north of King Khaled airport, and no casualties were reported.
Since 2015, Yemen has borne the brunt of a brutal Saudi-led and US-backed aggression which has nearly 14,000 Yemenis, mostly civilians including women and children killed. The Saudi regime launched its illegal aggression on Yemen to undermine the Ansarullah movement and restore to power fugitive Abdul Rabuh Mansour Hadi who resigned and fled the country.
The Saudi military aggression has also taken a heavy toll on Yemen’s facilities and infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, mosques and factories. This illegal aggression has prompted retaliation from Yemeni forces including launching missile attacks on Saudi military installations in the country’s capital Riyadh.