Saudi Arabia Intercepts Houthi Drone Attack; Civilian Casualties Reported
Details of the Drone Attack and Its Aftermath
Fatalities and Injuries Reported
Sept 17 (Reuters) - A Yemeni living in Saudi Arabia was killed on Thursday in the interception of a drone, which the kingdom's civil defence said was launched by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis.
The death in the southwestern governorate of Taif is the first announced by Saudi Arabia this month since the militant Houthis intensified their attacks.
Additional Civilian Impact
A Saudi woman and a Pakistani resident were also injured in the interception. Riyadh has previously announced that 86 people were injured this month in Houthi attacks.
Houthi Claims and Saudi Response
Houthi Military Operations
The Houthis did not claim any attacks on Thursday, but have previously announced military operations on southern Saudi areas.
Saudi Airstrikes in Yemen
The group said on Wednesday that 40 Saudi airstrikes targeted the Yemeni provinces of Taiz, Marib, and Hajjah in the past 24 hours.
Regional Implications
Escalation in the Saudi-Yemen Conflict
Threats to Red Sea Shipping
The escalation in the Saudi-Yemen conflict runs as another theatre of the Iran war and could threaten Red Sea shipping after the Houthis seized Yemen's western coast and islands inside the Strait of Bab el-Mandeb.
(Reporting by Nayera Abdallah; Editing by Hugh Lawson, Alexandra Hudson)
