Yemen: Houthi rebels launch attack on civilian plane on Abha airport in Saudi Arabia
Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Wednesday targeted Abha International Airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia, causing a civilian plane on the tarmac to catch fire, the kingdom’s state television reported, an attack that threatens to escalate Yemen’s grinding war.
Firefighters brought the blaze under control, Saudi state-owned Al-Ekhbariya TV said, without offering word on possible casualties from the assault. Saudi officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Iran-backed Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack soon afterward, with military spokesman Yehia Sareai saying the group used four bomb-laden drones to target Abha airport.
“This targeting comes in response to the continued aerial bombardment and the brutal siege on our country,” Sareai said, noting that the Houthis consider the airport a military not civilian target.