The Saudi coalition announces the interception of a missile towards Medina, and the Houthis deny targeting it

On Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition announced the interception and destruction of a ballistic missile that it said was launched by the Ansar Allah Houthi group towards the Medina region. The group denied targeting the city, stressing that its operations were limited to Saudi oil installations and military bases.

This came in conjunction with the Saudi authorities issuing warnings of a potential danger in Yanbu and Sharurah, before announcing that the danger had passed, amid the continued military escalation between the Kingdom and the Houthis.

Coalition spokesman, Turki Al-Maliki, said in a post on the X platform, “The air defense intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthi militia towards the Medina region.”

On the other hand, the Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Saree, rejected Saudi accusations of targeting Medina, describing them as a "blatant and dangerous slander."

Saree said, in statements reported by the group's Al-Masirah channel, that the Houthi operations target "oil installations and military bases only," stressing the group's respect for the sanctity of Islamic places.

The Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of using these accusations to incite international public opinion and mobilize support for its military campaign against Yemen.

The announcement came minutes after the Saudi Civil Defense issued an early warning warning of a potential danger in the Yanbu Governorate overlooking the Red Sea, before announcing that the danger had passed after about ten minutes.

It was not clear whether the warning in Yanbu was related to the missile that the coalition announced its interception. The Civil Defense also issued an emergency warning in the Sharurah region, southeast of the Kingdom, near the Yemeni border.

Yanbu is one of the most prominent Saudi oil export centers, as it is located at the end of the East-West Pipeline, known as “Petroline,” which transports oil from the production areas in the east of the Kingdom to the Red Sea coast, allowing it to be exported away from the Strait of Hormuz, which is witnessing a blockade in light of the regional war.

Yanbu Port and the pipeline have gained increasing importance since the outbreak of war in the Middle East, due to their role in continuing to ship Saudi crude oil and fuel to global markets.

Thursday's developments come a day after the Houthis announced a ballistic missile attack targeting King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, without confirmation from the Saudi authorities regarding the attack.

The group also announced the implementation of other missile and drone attacks on military sites in southern Saudi Arabia, without the reports containing information that independently confirms the results of those attacks.

The group's announcement came on Wednesday during Syrian President Ahmed Al-Shara'a's visit to the Kingdom, where he witnessed, alongside Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the signing of a defense agreement between the two countries, without revealing its details.

Reuters reported last month that Damascus was cautiously considering the possibility of providing military aid to Riyadh.

This comes in light of the continuing confrontations between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, which were renewed last July after years of relative calm, against the backdrop of the regional war linked to the American-Israeli confrontation with Iran.

The fighting escalated in September, when the Houthis made field progress in Yemen and took control of areas on the western coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, one of the most important sea lanes for global trade.

Since then, Saudi Arabia has intensified its strikes on Houthi sites, while the group has escalated its attacks with missiles and drones on airports, oil facilities, and military sites inside the Kingdom.

The Houthis have repeatedly stressed that they will not target "Mecca and Medina" during their military campaign against Saudi Arabia.

In parallel with the military escalation, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi made two separate phone calls on Thursday with his Saudi counterpart, Faisal bin Farhan, and his Qatari counterpart, Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry stated that the talks covered the latest regional developments and ongoing diplomatic efforts to enhance stability in the region.

These contacts come in light of the continued Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, and diplomatic efforts to end the war between Iran and the United States, in which Qatar plays a mediating role.

Araqji also discussed regional developments with his Jordanian counterpart, Ayman Al-Safadi, and his Omani counterpart, Badr Al-Busaidi, within the framework of ongoing diplomatic contacts to reduce the escalation.

In another development, on Thursday, Iran rejected European Union accusations that it provided military support to the Houthi group in Yemen. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baghaei denied the presence of Iranian military advisors in Yemen, considering that reports of their presence aim to “mislead public opinion.”

His statements came in response to a call on November 2 by European Union foreign policy chief Kaya Kallas on Iran to stop supporting the Houthis, considering that this support violates UN Security Council resolutions. Baqaei stressed that reaching peace in Yemen requires stopping military attacks and lifting the naval and air blockade, in addition to dialogue on the basis of an agreed-upon road map between the Yemenis and Saudi Arabia.

In light of the escalation of attacks, Saudi Arabia is seeking to strengthen its military cooperation with a number of countries to obtain defensive and offensive support in its confrontation with the Houthis. Last month, the Egyptian Parliament agreed to provide military support to the Kingdom, while Türkiye is preparing to ratify a joint defense agreement with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, which includes a clause for collective defense. Britain also announced in October that it would carry out defensive air sorties with military fighters to help protect Saudi cities from Houthi air attacks. In the same context, Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar discussed regional developments with his Saudi counterpart, Faisal bin Farhan, and the two sides stressed the importance of dialogue and diplomacy to promote peace and stability, according to the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Dar also discussed regional developments with the Iranian Ambassador to Islamabad, Reza Amiri Moghadam, stressing his country’s commitment to strengthening its relations with Tehran and the importance of diplomatic solutions.

On the humanitarian level, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced on Wednesday the delivery of four trucks loaded with basic medical aid to the Yemeni city of Taiz, which has been besieged by the Houthis since the beginning of October. The shipment included surgical supplies to help hospitals treat those injured as a result of the battles. The committee's global public relations officer, Hashem Oseiran, told Agence France-Presse that this is the first medical shipment to reach the city's hospitals since September 23, that is, before the fighting escalated in the region. Fletcher explained that water production in the city dropped by half, while food prices rose by no less than 50 percent, with hospitals on the verge of running out of fuel and medicine. He said that the United Nations has food and medicines ready to be sent, calling for allowing their passage and not leaving civilians hostage to the fighting. On Sunday, the United Nations announced the displacement of more than 300,000 people in Yemen as a result of the escalation of fighting in the west of the country, noting that the vast majority of displacement cases were recorded during the past two months.