An attack by the Houthi rebels on southern Saudi Arabia injured 11 civilians on Thursday, as the Iran-backed group escalates attacks on the kingdom and in Yemen.
Saudi military spokesman Maj Gen Turki Al Malki said early on Friday that the attack in the southern Najran province injured seven Saudis, one Yemeni, two Egyptians and one Pakistani citizen. The victims included a four-year-old child who suffered second-degree burns.
"The terrorist Houthi militia carried out these terrorist attacks using indiscriminate shelling against civilian objects," Maj Gen Al Malki said, calling the attack a breach of international law. He added that the Saudi-led coalition would continue to take all necessary measures to protect civilians.
There was no immediate comment from the Houthis on that statement, but the group has increased attacks in recent weeks. Saudi Arabia's conflict with the Houthis has become increasingly entangled with the wider regional war, as the group's actions, such as a Red Sea "blockade" that has disrupted Saudi oil exports, have raised the stakes.
On Tuesday, the Houthis claimed to have attacked Saudi Arabia's Najran airport, as part of a broader escalation in which they have struck military, infrastructure and shipping targets in the kingdom. Their claims are often exaggerated.
The Houthis also killed at least 45 Yemeni government troops on Thursday in attacks in the Marib and Hadhramaut provinces. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group struck camps belonging to what it described as the Saudi-backed 1st and 3rd Emergency Divisions in Yemen, using ballistic missiles and drones.
The Houthis claimed the attacks killed and injured hundreds of fighters and destroyed camps, weapons depots and military vehicles. The group urged Yemeni fighters aligned with Saudi Arabia to leave their positions and return home.
Saudi Arabia supports the internationally recognised Yemeni government. The conflict with the Houthis eased after an agreement was signed in 2022, but the rebels have escalated attacks against Saudi ships and oil sites in recent weeks.
The Houthis say the attacks are in response to Saudi Arabia's “blockade” of Houthi-controlled areas, including ports and Sanaa International Airport.
The kingdom recently launched an international maritime alliance aimed at protecting the Red Sea and the Bab Al Mandeb strait, which are key to Saudi exports, from Houthi attacks. On Thursday, the Saudi Defence Ministry announced that Maj Gen Abdullah Al Shehri had been appointed commander of the alliance.
A senior Saudi official told Reuters that intelligence from the US, Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries found that the Houthis and Iraqi militia groups, in co-ordination with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, could soon launch attacks on key civilian sites.
The kingdom has said several attacks it had confronted since the start of the Iran war in February were launched from Iraqi territory. Last week, Saudi Arabia and the US conducted joint strikes on Iran-backed militias in Iraq.
Riyadh is seeking to deepen security co-operation with key allies. Saudi Arabia already has a defence co-operation agreement with Pakistan.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in the kingdom on Thursday, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was due to arrive on Friday for a meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
