RIYADH—Ballistic missiles were intercepted on Saturday in the sky above Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh and the southern city of Jazan, Saudi state media reported, citing its own sources and the Saudi-led coalition fighting against the Houthis in Yemen.
Residents in Riyadh reported multiple blasts around 11:20 p.m. local time, followed by emergency vehicle sirens in some northern districts.
The source of the projectiles was unclear and there was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis battling the Saudi-led coalition have launched hundreds of missiles and drones across the border, mostly at nearby civilian and military targets like the Saudi cities of Abha and Khamis Mushait, but also at the capital, Riyadh. The last attempted strike on the capital was in June 2018.
Saudi Arabia blamed Iran for a September 2019 drone and missile attack on two oil installations that initially halved Saudi oil output. Tehran denied any involvement after the Houthis claimed responsibility.
The Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen’s civil war in 2015 on the request of the internationally-recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi who was ousted by the Houthis in 2014.
