Night strikes on the Saudi-Yemeni front: a missile was intercepted, aircraft attacked the Houthis

On the night of Friday, October 23, the Saudi-led Arab coalition reported intercepting a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis towards the city of Najran in the south of the kingdom. According to Anadolu Agency, over the past 24 hours, Saudi air defense intercepted nine drones in the areas of Riyadh, Medina and the Eastern Province, as well as a ballistic missile.

The offensive operation of Yemen Dawn by government forces continues in Yemen. According to Al-Arabiya, in the early morning of October 23, aircraft carried out strikes on Houthi reinforcements south of Taiz. The day before, strikes were carried out on Houthi missile launchers, radar stations, military communications systems and weapons depots in the provinces of Taiz, Saada, Sana’a and Ibb.

A Yemeni army spokesman said that over the past 24 hours, government forces carried out about 780 fire operations against the Houthis, mainly in the provinces of Taiz, Al-Jawf, Marib and Al-Bayda. According to the command, hundreds of units of military equipment were destroyed or disabled. There is no independent confirmation of these data.

Reuters reports that the largest Saudi oil company, Saudi Aramco, has ordered the evacuation of employees at its headquarters in Dhahran. The decision comes amid ongoing Houthi attacks on the kingdom’s oil infrastructure and airports. The death toll from the strike on Dammam International Airport on October 21 has risen to two, with eight people injured. Two more people were killed when debris from an intercepted drone fell near the Shaiba oil field.

Due to the escalation of the situation, the United States ordered the removal of some diplomatic personnel and family members of employees from Saudi Arabia. The UK has announced increased military assistance to the kingdom, including air defences, tanker aircraft and Typhoon fighter jets for defensive missions. Egypt is considering the possibility of providing military support to Saudi Arabia, but President Abd al-Fattah al-Sisi stressed that we can only talk about the defense of Saudi territory, and not about attacks on Yemen.