'Yemeni rebels target 2 airports, base in Saudi Arabia'

SANAA, Yemen (AA) – Yemen’s Houthi rebel group on Saturday said it launched drone attacks on two Saudi airports and a base in the kingdom’s south.

Jizan airport, Abha airport, and the Khamis Mushait base were targeted using drones, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a statement.

The attacks are in response to “the crime of aggression and continued blockade against the Yemeni people,” he said, without giving any more details.

Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition said its forces destroyed two Houthi drones that targeted neighborhoods in the kingdom’s southern region.

The Houthi 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.

More than 100,000 Yemenis, including civilians, are believed to have been killed in the conflict, which has led to the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, with millions at risk of starvation.

* Ahmed Asmar contributed to this report from Ankara