RIYADH: Ten people were injured on Friday during a drone attack by Iran-backed Houthi militia on the King Abdulaziz Airport in Jazan, the Arab Coalition supporting Yemen’s legitimate government said.
Coalition spokesman Brig. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki was quoted by state media as saying two armed drones launched from Yemen were shot down from the sky by Saudi air defenses.
Falling debris from the destroyed unmanned aerial vehicles caused minor injuries on passengers and airport personnel, the coalition said.
Among the injured were six Saudi passengers and airport employees, three Bangladeshi workers and a Sudanese worker.
The coalition also intercepted a ballistic missile and two bomb-laden drones launched by the Houthis toward Khamis Mushayt city in nearby Asir region.
Earlier on Thursday, four people were also slightly injured after a Houthi drone was intercepted at Abha International Airport, also in Asir.
Al-Maliki faulted the Houthis for their “immoral practices” of hitting civilians and non-military targets, and that targetting a civilian airport could amount to a war crime.
“We are still exercising restraint in the face of these senseless Houthi attempts to target civilians in civilian airports,” he said on state TV.
Following the attack, Jazan’s acting governor was seen checking up on the victims 10 passengers early Saturday.
The latest attacks were condemned by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab Parliament.
Targeting civilian airports pose a threat to air traffic security, warned the Arab Parliament.
