ISLAMABAD – Pakistan has strongly condemned the missile attack by Houthi militants at Abha airport in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday.
In a statement, the Foreign Office said that Pakistan “reiterates its full support and solidarity with the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia against any threats to its security and territorial integrity”.
Earlier, Houthi-affiliated Al Masirah TV reported Wednesday that the Houthi forces launched a cruise missile attack on Abha airport, which is about 200km north of the border with Yemen and serves domestic and regional routes.
The attack left 26 civilians in the building’s arrivals hall wounded, according to the Saudi-UAE-led coalition fighting the rebels.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/world/26-injured-in-houthi-missile-strike-on-saudi-arabias-abha-airport/
In a statement on Wednesday, the coalition said a projectile hit the arrivals hall at Abha airport, causing material damage. Three women and two children were among the wounded, and were of Saudi, Yemeni and Indian nationalities, it said.
Eight people were taken to hospital while most were treated on site.
The attack could amount to a war crime and proved that the Houthis have acquired “advanced weapons from Iran”, the coalition said, vowing to take “urgent and timely” measures in response.
There was no immediate response from Iran, which has denied arming the Houthis.
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/world/saudi-arabia-says-it-intercepted-missiles-targeting-mecca/
The Abha attack comes as the Saudi-UAE-led coalition, which intervened in Yemen in 2015 to try to restore the internationally-recognised government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi that had been forced out of power by the Houthis, intensified air raids on rebel positions in the northern Hajjah province.
The rebels have also stepped up drone and missile attacks on the kingdom amid tensions between Iran and the United States, Riyadh’s main ally.
Last month, the Saudi air force also shot down a bomb-laden drone deployed by Houthi rebels that targeted Jizan airport, close to the southern border with Yemen, the coalition said.
Two oil pumping stations in Saudi Arabia were hit by Houthi drones causing minor supply disruptions highlighting an apparent significant leap in the drone capabilities of the Houthis.
