Yemen's Houthi rebels launch drone attack on Abha airport in Saudi Arabia

Yemen's Houthi rebels launch drone attack on Abha airport in Saudi Arabia
The Houthis said they used Qasif 2 drones in the attack, the latest in a series of assaults on airports in southern Saudi Arabia.
2 min read
29 July, 2019
The Houthis have increasingly used drones to target southern Saudi Arabia [Getty]
Yemen's Houthi rebels said on Sunday they launched a drone attack on Saudi Arabia's Abha international airport, the latest in a series of assaults by the armed group.

The Houthis said they used Qasif 2 drones in the attack, adding that the strikes were "accurate", Al-Masirah TV reported, citing the group's military spokesman.

There was no immediate confirmation from Saudi authorities.

The Houthis have increasingly used drones to target southern Saudi Arabia, including two strikes in June on the same airport.

The conflict in Yemen began with the 2014 takeover of northern and central Yemen by the rebels, driving out the internationally recognised government from the capital, Sanaa.

Months later, in March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition launched an air campaign to prevent the Houthis from overrunning the country's south.

In the campaign, Saudi-led airstrikes have hit schools, hospitals and wedding parties and killed thousands of Yemeni civilians. The Houthis have used drones and missiles to attack Saudi Arabia and have targeted vessels in the Red Sea in response to the deadly raids.

Civilians have borne the brunt of the conflict, which has created what the United Nations says is the world's worst humanitarian crisis. 

The war has killed at least 91,600 people since 2015, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, or ACLED, which tracks the violence.

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