RIYADH: The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthi militia has destroyed 82 military targets across Yemen in response to recent attacks on civilian infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, including deadly strikes on airports in Riyadh and Abha, coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki said Thursday.

Al-Maliki said the attacks on civilians and civilian objects “will not go unpunished,” according to a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

Al-Maliki later on Thursday afternoon posted on his social media account that two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthis towards Riyadh have been intercepted and destroyed.

Comprehensive operation

The Joint Forces of the Coalition carried out a “comprehensive operation” targeting Houthi military positions in the Yemeni governorates of Saada, Al-Hudaydah, Al-Jawf and Marib, he said.

The targets included 11 mountain-based ballistic missile storage facilities in Saada, as well as command and control centers, communications systems, missile and weapons depots and gathering sites used by Houthi forces.

Attacks on Saudi airports

The operation followed attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and Abha International Airport in the southwestern Asir region.

Three people were killed and 36 injured in the attacks, according to Saudi civil aviation authorities. Two women, a Moroccan and an Algerian, were killed in the attack on Abha airport, where 28 people were injured. A Sudanese man was killed and eight people were injured in the attack on King Khalid airport in Riyadh.

The coalition also said it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched toward Riyadh on Wednesday.

Missile launch platform in Sanaa destroyed

Al-Maliki said the launch platform used in that attack had subsequently been destroyed in Sanaa while militants were preparing it for an imminent attack against Saudi Arabia.

The latest strikes mark a sharp escalation in the conflict, which has intensified after years of relative calm. Saudi Arabia and allied Yemeni government forces have launched a major ground and air offensive to retake territory seized by the Houthis along Yemen’s western Red Sea coast and near the Bab Al-Mandab Strait.

The fighting has centered in areas including Dhubab and around the strategic port of Mokha, while the Houthis have sought to maintain positions overlooking the Bab Al-Mandab, a critical maritime chokepoint through which about 12 percent of global trade passes.

The escalation has also raised concerns about threats to vital energy and shipping infrastructure. Riyadh has been targeted repeatedly in recent days, while oil and military assets have also come under attack. New protective fencing has been erected around fuel tanks and other equipment belonging to Saudi Aramco near King Khalid airport.

Houthi attacks on civilian infrastructure

The Institute for the Study of War has said the Houthis appear to view attacks on civilian infrastructure, including airports and oil facilities, as a means of increasing Saudi Arabia’s economic costs and pressuring Riyadh to meet their demands.

The coalition has pledged continued operational support for Yemen’s internationally recognized government as it seeks to reverse Houthi territorial gains. In an Oct. 4 statement carried by SPA, Al-Maliki said coalition forces would continue supporting Yemeni government forces and described the Houthi threat to shipping in the southern Red Sea and Bab Al-Mandab as a threat to regional and international security.

The renewed fighting has also taken a heavy humanitarian toll. AP reported that nearly 1,000 people have been killed and more than 200,000 displaced in the latest escalation, while the World Health Organization has warned of rising cholera and malnutrition cases and shortages of medical supplies at some hospitals.

The conflict dates back to 2014, when the Houthis seized Sanaa and large parts of Yemen. Saudi Arabia led a coalition that intervened in March 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government. A UN-backed truce that began in April 2022 brought a prolonged period of relative calm, but the latest territorial advances and fighting have revived the war on a major scale.

The coalition’s latest operation underscores the widening military confrontation, with Saudi forces seeking to protect population centers and critical infrastructure while supporting Yemeni government forces in their effort to regain territory from the Houthis.

• With AP