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Saudi Arabia says Houthis tried to attack its capital
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The Associated Press
Supporters of Yemen's Houthi rebels shout slogans during a rally in support of the group in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, Sept. 18, 2026.
There were no reports of casualties or damage.
The statement also said the Houthis tried to attack civilian infrastructure in the Red Sea port city of Yanbu — where a key Saudi pipeline ends — and in Taif, Baysh and Farasan but they were thwarted, giving no further details.
The Houthis earlier claimed, without providing evidence, that they had targeted "sensitive sites" in Riyadh and facilities of Saudi oil giant Aramco in Yanbu, causing "massive fires." Aramco, the world's largest oil company, did not respond to a request for comment.
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− Osamah Abdulrahman/AP hide caption
Saudi Arabia on Saturday said that Yemen's Houthi rebels tried to attack Riyadh with a ballistic missile, the first time the Saudi capital has been targeted since the escalation in fighting with the Iran-backed rebels opened a new front in the Iran war.
+ Osamah Abdulrahman/AP hide caption
CAIRO — Saudi Arabia on Saturday confirmed that Yemen's Houthi rebels tried to attack its capital with a ballistic missile, the first targeting of Riyadh since the escalation in fighting with the Tehran-backed rebels that has opened a new front in the Iran war.
− The statement said the attack was intercepted.
+ The statement by the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis came long after the dawn attempt, which the coalition said was intercepted.
− Some residents in Riyadh heard an explosion, and later some saw a plume of smoke near the airport.
+ Some residents in Riyadh heard an explosion.
+ Later, some saw a plume of smoke near the airport.
− The head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, told Al Jazeera in an interview that Iran has conveyed its conditions for ending the war to the U.S. via Qatar and it is waiting for President Donald Trump's response.
+ The growing conflict near another important global shipping corridor has brought new pressures for markets.
− It was not clear when the conditions were shared.
+ Houthi military spokesperson Brig.
− Rezaei said they include ending the war on all fronts, releasing assets seized from Iran and ending the U.S.
+ Gen.
− naval blockade of Iranian ports.
+ Yahya Saree claimed they attacked with cruise and ballistic missiles as well as drones.
− Earlier U.S.-Iran negotiations fell apart.
He also said Iran wants the fighting involving Yemen and Saudi Arabia to end.
The head of U.S.
+ He said Saudi Arabia had attempted to target the rebel-held city of Sanaa in neighboring Yemen, without giving details.
− Central Command said the military has supported the transit of 1 billion barrels of oil through the Strait of Hormuz over the past two months and claimed that Iran has "exported zero barrels" because of a U.S. blockade.
+ The Associated Press couldn't independently verify the claims.
− Adm.
+ Recent days have seen one escalation after another.
− Brad Cooper said the strait's primary transit lanes have been cleared of mines, and the volume of oil, natural gas and cargo transiting over the past two weeks is the highest it has been in six months — or shortly after the war began with U.S. and Israeli strikes.
+ On Thursday, the first civilian casualty was reported as the Saudi civil defense said debris from an intercepted Houthi drone killed a Yemeni resident of Saudi Arabia.
− But monitors say shipping traffic remains well below prewar levels. Iran continues to attack ships as it asserts control over the waterway through which about one-fifth of the world's traded oil and natural gas passed before the war.
+ And on Wednesday, Saudi Arabia said the Houthis had tried to attack Mecca, Islam's holiest city, with a drone that it said was intercepted, calling the security of the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad a "red line." The Houthis fiercely denied the accusation.
− Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar discussed uninterrupted energy supplies and safe passage for commercial ships during a telephone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Dar cited the potential effects of disruptions on developing countries and global supply chains.
Rising energy prices have increased pressure on Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government.
+ The United States, a close Saudi ally, has signaled it has no current fight with the Houthis.
− An Islamist party has threatened to march on the capital, Islamabad, unless the government lowers fuel prices.
+ Regional officials have told The Associated Press that Saudi Arabia is running low on missile interceptors and instead has asked France, Britain, Pakistan and Egypt for air defense support.
− Iran's state TV said the Tehran prosecutor's office filed charges against race organizers after women participated without covering their hair because "legal and Islamic Sharia" wasn't observed.
The country's ruling theocracy requires women to wear scarves that cover their hair and loose-fitting clothes that hide their bodies.
Footage circulated online shows women running the 10-kilometer (6-mile) race without the hair covering.
+ Meanwhile, fighting has surged inside Yemen between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government.
− Habib Sotoudehnejad, head of Tehran's sports department, said about 5% of participants violated race rules. The race was run separately for men and women.
+ The rebels raced down the country's Red Sea coast over a week ago, seizing the key port city of Mokha and islands on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea.
− Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan suggested Turkey could provide military support to Saudi Arabia under a recently signed defense pact.
+ That has improved their surveillance of passing ships, though the Houthis have said they are only targeting Saudi ones.
− Asked in a TV interview about the possibility of the three-member alliance, which also includes Pakistan, engaging in military action against Yemen's Houthis, Fidan said Turkey would "face no difficulty in meeting" any military needs.
+ The fighting in Yemen also marks a return to a devastating civil war after four years of relative calm.
− "We observe very serious attacks on Saudi Arabia's territorial integrity and sovereignty," he told broadcaster NTV.
+ NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews.
− "We have an alliance agreement in place and we stand by our word."
NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews.