Yemeni Houthi Rebels Say Carried Out Drone Strike On Saudi Airbase

CAIRO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd April, 2021) The Yemeni Shia Houthi rebels said they had carried out a drone strike on a Saudi airbase, but Riyadh refuted the reports.

On Thursday, the Houthis said they had staged a drone attack on "sensitive and important" sites in the Saudi capital of Riyadh.

"Two drones have carried out a strike on the airbase, the target is confirmed to have been hit. The strike is a response to the escalation of tensions staged by the aggressor as well as the continuation of the blockade of our country," Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saria wrote on his Twitter page on late Thursday.

In turn, the Saudi-led coalition said that it had intercepted two explosive-laden drones sent to attack its military base.

Yemen has been gripped by an internal conflict between the government forces and the Houthi movement for over six years. Since 2015, the Saudi-led coalition fighting on the government's side has been conducting air, land and sea operations against the rebels, who control the capital of Sanaa and large areas in Yemen's north and west. The Houthis often retaliate by firing projectiles and bomber drones at the Saudi territory.

On March 22, Saudi Arabia proposed a comprehensive UN-sponsored ceasefire in Yemen, but the Houthis demanded that Riyadh first lift the economic blockade of Yemeni ports and airports.