Iran still supplying Houthis with ballistic missiles in Yemen, coalition says

The rebels are targeting cities in Saudi Arabia with explosives

A drone used by Houthi rebels to launch attacks on Saudi Arabia. AP

Iran is still supplying Yemen’s Houthi rebels with ballistic missiles and unmanned aircraft despite warnings of retaliation by the Arab Coalition, it said on Tuesday.

“We have documented information on the supply of rockets by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) to Yemen’s Houthi militias,” said Arab Coalition spokesman Col Turki Al Malki during a press conference in Riyadh.

The coalition “will not allow the rebels to continue targeting residential areas with rockets,” he said, adding that it will increase its activities to combat the threats posed by the Houthis.

He said the international community must do more to counter the rebel threat.

The Iranian-backed rebels have increased missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia in the past two weeks amid a standoff between the US and Iran.

"They are attempting to target Saudi cities with ballistic missiles," Col Al Malki said.

The militias are also "threatening the maritime navigation in Bab El Mandeb," he said, adding that the coalition managed to thwart more than 35 Houthi violations.

On Sunday, a Houthi drone armed with explosives was launched towards Jizan’s airport.

The Saudi air force managed to destroy the drone.

A similar attack occurred last Thursday when Saudi defences intercepted a Houthi drone launched towards the city of Najran, also near the Yemeni border.

"The Houthis are committing war crimes by targeting civilians and passengers especially at Najran and Jizan airports," Col Al Malki said.

The rebels took responsibility for drone strikes on oil stations in Saudi Arabia on May 14, and later said they were planning attacks on 300 targets in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and their bases in Yemen.

The two countries are leading the military coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 to restore the internationally recognised government, which was pushed out of Sanaa by the Houthis in late 2014.