Saudi-led military coalition destroyed four Iran-backed Houthi drones

The Saudi-led military coalition has shared that it recently tracked and destroyed four armed drones owned by the Iran-backed Houthi movement. The announcement was made on Sunday, saying the drones were intercepted over southern Saudi Arabia.

The first drone was reportedly intercepted early Sunday morning, with the other three being intercepted later on in the day. Colonel Turki al-Malki said the drones were targeting “civilians and civilian objects,” making it even more important for them to be stopped.

The Saudi-led coalition said it would continue to take out Houthi drones and equipment following international law. The coalition has performed airstrikes on Houthi locations in the past after being targeted with drones and missiles.

Last September, the Houthi movement reportedly targeted Saudi Arabia’s Abha International Airport and sensitive military targets with drones. The attack forced the airport to close for a few hours and took out military positions and a few sensitive targets.

The drones used in the attack were the Samad 3 long-range UAV named after the Houthi leader Saleh al-Sammad, who the United Arab Emirates assassinated in 2018. The Samad 3 is an extended-range version of the Samed 2 drone. It can fly 1,500 km on a single fuel tank and is described as “inexpensive, small, slow, and clumsy, and unlikely to strike targets with good accuracy.”

The Saudi-led military brutally took over Yemen in 2015. Many hospitals and infrastructure have been destroyed, leaving the people with no support and no where safe to go ever since Houthi forces and anti-Houthi forces have been fighting to control the country.

In 2019, the United Nations reported an estimated 24 million people, or 85% of the population, in need of humanitarian assistance. Last year the country was placed in the Fragile State Index, the second-worst in the Global Hunger Index, with the only country surpassing it being the Central African Republic. Sadly, the country has the lowest Human Development Index out of all non-African countries.

Photo: Ibrahem Qasim