Yemen: Coalition downs 3 booby-trapped Houthi drones

By Mohammad al-Samei

SANAA, Yemen (AA) - The Saudi-led Arab Coalition in Yemen announced on Friday it destroyed three explosive-laden drones fired by the Yemeni Houthi rebels towards southern Saudi territories.

"The coalition forces managed to intercept and destroy three unmanned explosive-laden drones launched by Houthi militia towards Saudi Arabia," the Saudi Al-Ikhbariya channel quoted a statement by the coalition as saying.

The statement also said that the Houthis use Al-Hudaydah province, western Yemen to launch explosive-laden drones and attacks against the Kingdom.

"The Houthi militia continues to violate the International Humanitarian Law and the Stockholm Agreement," it added.

The Yemeni government and the Houthis signed the Stockholm Agreement in 2018 for a cease-fire in Al-Hudaydah.

The Houthi group is yet to comment on the coalition statement, yet the group regularly announces rocket and drone attacks on Saudi territories, saying they are a reaction to the Saudi-led coalition’s assault on Yemen.

Yemen has been beset by violence and chaos since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, including the capital Sanaa.

The crisis escalated in 2015 when the Saudi-led coalition launched a devastating air campaign aimed at rolling back Houthi territorial gains.

According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the conflict in Yemen has so far claimed the lives of 233,000 people.

*Ahmed Asmar in Ankara contributed to this report