Saudi-led coalition downs Houthi missile fired towards Najran

The Saudi-led coalition on Thursday evening intercepted a missile and an explosive-laden drone launched by Yemen’s Houthi group towards the kingdom’s southern region close to the Yemeni border.

Yemen has been locked in conflict since 2014 when the Iran-aligned Houthis seized Sanaa, the capital, and then much of the country’s north.

Fighting escalated in March 2015 when the Saudi-led coalition intervened to restore the government of president Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

The missile was headed in the direction of the city of Najran when it was shot down, Saudi television said, citing coalition spokesman Turki Al-Maliki.