Houthis say to unveil new ballistic missile after striking Saudi sites

Just a day after striking sensitive oil installations and military sites inside Saudi Arabia in a retaliatory operation, Yemeni armed forces said they will soon unveil a new type of domestic ballistic missile.

Brigadier Abdullah bin Amer, deputy director of the Department of Moral Guidance for Media Affairs, hailed Yemen’s major military operation that targeted a number of sites deep within the Saudi territory, including King Khalid airbase in the city of Khamis Mushait, an oil facility in Jizan industrial zone as well as military sites at Abha, Jizan and Najran airports and a military camp in Ma’rib Province.

Unlike previous operations that involved launching only one ballistic missile, the recent strike was conducted using a combination of missiles and drones, Almasirah TV channel quoted bin Amer as saying, Press TV reported.

He also explained that the latest attack came in response to the Riyadh’s ongoing bloodshed in Yemen, particularly the attack that took place in Hajjah Province in recent days.

The enemy, he added, has tightened its blockade of Yemen and thus the armed forces have a duty to break the siege through military operations.

The official gave assurances that Yemen’s operations are not blind as they do not target civilians, adding their strategic goal is to put a stop of the Saudi attacks and end the siege.

“We will soon unveil a new type of ballistic missile,” bin Amer said.

Speaking on Monday, the spokesman for Yemen’s Armed Forces said the coordinated operation had come in response to the crimes committed by the Saudi-led coalition, especially in Hajjah Province.

Brigadier General Yahya Saree also warned that the Yemenis “will not hesitate to carry out more painful strikes” until Saudi-led aggression ends the war and lifts the crippling siege.

Saudi Arabia waged a devastating military aggression against its southern neighbor in March 2015 in collaboration with a number of its allied states, and with arms support from certain Western countries.

The purported aim was to return to power a Riyadh-backed former regime and defeat the Houthi Ansarullah movement that took control of state matters after the resignation of the then president and his government.

The Saudi-led aggression has claimed an estimated 100,000 lives over the past five years. The UN refers to the situation in Yemen as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.