US condemns Yemen’s Houthis ‘egregious’ attack on Saudi Arabia

US condemns Yemen’s Houthis ‘egregious’ attack on Saudi Arabia
March 1, 2021, 10:49 am

American and Saudi national flags are seen on a main road in Riyadh, on May 19, 2017. (File photo: AFP)

The United States condemned the latest attack on Saudi Arabia by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militias, stressing its commitment to the “longstanding partnership” with the Kingdom, the State Department said on Sunday.

“The United States strongly condemns the Houthis’ attacks on population centers in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, February 27. These attacks threaten not only innocent civilians but also prospects for peace and stability in Yemen,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said.

“We call on the Houthis to end these egregious… The United States remains committed to its longstanding partnership with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and to helping Saudi Arabia defend its territory as it faces attacks from Iranian-aligned groups,” he added.

The Arab Coalition said on Saturday it intercepted a ballistic missile that targeted the Saudi Capital Riyadh launched by the Houthis.

Fragments of the missile scattered over several Riyadh neighborhoods, damaging at least one home but no casualties were reported, Saudi's state-run al-Ekhbariya television said.

Separately, the coalition said it had intercepted six Houthi drones targeting the Kingdom, including the southern cities of Khamis Mushait and Jizan.

US President Joe Biden’s administration revoked a terrorist designation of the Houthis introduced by former President Donald Trump in January.

Saudi Arabia maintained that it will continue to treat the Houthis as a terrorist organization regardless of whether the United States decided to designate the group as such, according to the Kingdom's permanent representative to the UN.

Biden also announced in February ending US support for the offensive operations of the Arab Coalition which intervened in Yemen 2015.

The Arab Coalition supports the internationally recognized government of Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi against the Houthis.

Yemen’s Houthis have recently escalated aerial attacks on civilian areas in Saudi Arabia. Riyadh said a Houthi drone attack caused a fire in a civilian aircraft at an airport in Abha last week.