Saudi Coalition Says It Intercepted Houthi Missiles Over Riyadh as Witnesses Report Damage to Aramco Tower

Since the Houthis declared a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia on July 22, the Yemen war has moved steadily out of Yemen and into the Saudi heartland. This weekend it reached the capital.

On Sunday, Nov. 8, loud explosions were heard in Riyadh after Saudi Civil Defense issued an early-warning alert. Coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki said on X that air defenses "intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthi terrorist militia towards Riyadh." Less than an hour later he said two cruise missiles were shot down over the Riyadh and southern regions, without naming their origin.

Earlier Sunday, the coalition said it intercepted another ballistic missile fired toward the Eastern Province. Civil Defense later said the danger in Riyadh had passed.

Damage in the financial district

Witnesses told Agence France-Presse that the Aramco tower in Riyadh's King Abdullah Financial District was hit. "Aramco tower in KAFD has been targeted, that's the sure thing," one said. Two others confirmed seeing damage. A Reuters witness separately reported damage to an Aramco building in the district.

There has been no official Saudi comment on the damage or on casualties. The coalition's account is that the missiles it named were intercepted.

What the Houthis say they hit

On Saturday, Nov. 7, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree claimed six operations using ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones. His list:

• Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport, plus Aramco oil storage tanks and a distillation tower in the city.
• Aramco facilities at Khurais.
• Pumping Station No. 8 in the Dawadmi area.
• A Saudi National Guard camp in Najran.
• Troop positions east of Al-Jawf governorate.
• Troop concentrations east of the Raghwah and Madghal districts in Marib, which he said were under a Saudi officer named Fares Al-Shammari and left "a large number of dead and wounded."

Saree said the operations answered Saudi strikes on Al-Hadara Market in Taiz province on Friday and on homes in Bani Hashish that afternoon. He described both as killing dozens of civilians. Saudi Arabia has not confirmed any of the Houthi claims, the damage, or any troop casualties. Saudi Civil Defense also issued a brief alert in Najran on Saturday and cleared it about 10 minutes later.

Saree separately alleged that Saudi Arabia carried out 105 air and missile strikes on Yemen in 24 hours, and put the total since the escalation began at 4,369. Those figures are Houthi claims.

The Saudi side of the casualties

The Houthi-run Health Ministry said Saudi airstrikes on a village near Sanaa killed at least 25 people and wounded 30, mostly women and children. The toll was later put at 33. Saudi authorities said they were investigating. The ministry's numbers have not been independently confirmed.

Yemen's internationally recognized government, for its part, has urged Lebanon to prevent alleged Hezbollah support for the Houthis.

A war Riyadh has no easy way out of

The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing people briefed on the talks, that the Houthis demanded $51 billion from Saudi Arabia and formal recognition as Yemen's rulers as the price of ending hostilities. According to the Journal, Riyadh reached out first, after Houthi attacks on Red Sea tankers and the group's seizure of territory overlooking the Bab al-Mandeb strait. Neither the Saudi government nor Houthi leadership responded to the Journal's requests for comment.

The military picture is worsening. Reuters reported Monday that Houthi forces are within about 50 miles of Aden, the seat of the recognized government and closer than at any point since 2015. The conflict monitor Acled counted 26 reported incidents inside the kingdom in recent days alone. The Journal also reported a Houthi strike in Shabwah governorate that killed at least 75 people and wounded more than 200 in an area that would serve as a muster point for any Saudi-led ground attack.

Saudi officials told the Journal that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman does not want to negotiate fully without battlefield gains for leverage. He also fears that sending more troops to Yemen would be bloody and unpopular at home. Dozens of Saudi personnel have reportedly been killed, though Saudi authorities have not announced casualties.

Outside help is thin. The United Arab Emirates withdrew from the anti-Houthi campaign last December after a dispute with Riyadh. Analysts quoted by the Journal said the Houthis have far less to lose in a war of attrition. They said Riyadh's larger worry is the precedent that the group could escalate whenever it wants more money.

The years-long truce collapsed over the summer. Since hostilities resumed in July, the Houthis have targeted Saudi airports, ports and oil facilities, while Saudi Arabia has carried out airstrikes inside Yemen.

What to watch

It is unclear whether Riyadh confirms or denies the damage to the Aramco tower. Also unresolved is whether the crown prince keeps relying on air defenses and airstrikes or commits ground troops with the Houthis closing on Aden. Saudi authorities have said only that they are investigating the Sanaa-area strike that Houthi officials say killed at least 33 people.