Yemen rebel drones target Saudi airports

Saudi air defences intercepted Yemeni rebel drones targeting civilian airports yesterday, a Riyadh-led military coalition said, as the rebels ramp up cross-border attacks.

The coalition, in a statement published on Saudi state media, said the strikes were “simultaneous” but did not specify the targets or number of drones intercepted.

The Iran-aligned Huthi rebels’ Al-Masirah television earlier said their drones targeted civilian airports in the southern cities of Abha and Najran as well as King Khaled airbase in Khamis Mushait.

The strikes come just days after the rebels carried out a deadly attack on a security training camp near Yemen’s government-held second city Aden.

The rebels said they launched a drone and a ballistic missile at the camp.

The Huthi rebels -- who have faced persistent coalition bombing since March 2015 which has exacted a heavy civilian death toll -- have stepped up missile and drone attacks across the border in recent weeks.

Nine civilians were wounded in a July 3 Huthi attack on Abha airport, the coalition said.

A June 12 missile attack on the same airport wounded 26 civilians, drawing warnings of “stern action” from the coalition.

And on June 23, a rebel attack on Abha airport killed a Syrian and wounded 21 other civilians, the coalition said.