Saudi Air Defenses Destroy Houthi Ballistic Missile, Armed Drone Fired at Kingdom

Coalition spokesman Brigadier General Turki al-Malki. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Coalition spokesman Brigadier General Turki al-Malki. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Air Defenses Destroy Houthi Ballistic Missile, Armed Drone Fired at Kingdom

Coalition spokesman Brigadier General Turki al-Malki. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Coalition spokesman Brigadier General Turki al-Malki. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi air defenses intercepted and downed on Friday night a ballistic missile and armed drone fired by the Iran-backed Houthi militias in Yemen against the Kingdom.

The terrorist Houthis were aiming to target the regions of Jazan and Khamis Mushait.

The Saudi-led Arab coalition said: “Several hostile Houthi attacks against civilians have been detected and thwarted.”

Such attacks are tantamount to war crimes, it added.

The coalition stressed that its forces were taking the necessary measures to protect civilians in line with international humanitarian law.

Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary-General Dr. Nayef al-Hajraf condemned the Houthis for repeatedly trying to attack civilian locations.

This persistence, he added, reflects the Houthis’ flagrant defiance of the international community and dismissal of all international laws and norms.

He urged the international community to assume its responsibilities and to take a decisive stance against the militias to halt these terrorist acts.



UAE President Tells Rubio Rejects Displacement of Palestinians

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as they meet at ADNEC Center Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi, on February 19, 2025. (AFP)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as they meet at ADNEC Center Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi, on February 19, 2025. (AFP)
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UAE President Tells Rubio Rejects Displacement of Palestinians

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as they meet at ADNEC Center Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi, on February 19, 2025. (AFP)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as they meet at ADNEC Center Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi, on February 19, 2025. (AFP)

United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan told visiting US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday that Abu Dhabi rejected any displacement of Palestinians, official media said.

Sheikh Mohammed "affirmed the UAE's firm position rejecting any attempts aimed at displacing the Palestinian people from their land", the Gulf state's WAM news agency said following a US proposal to take over the war-battered Gaza Strip and move its inhabitants.

It added that the president "stressed the need for the reconstruction of Gaza to be linked to a path leading to comprehensive and lasting peace based on the two-state solution".

The Abu Dhabi meeting covered a range of regional and international issues of shared concern, with a focus on developments in the Middle East and the Palestinian Territory and ongoing efforts to address the crisis in Gaza, as well as its implications for regional peace, stability, and security.

Sheikh Mohamed and Rubio also discussed cooperation between their countries, as well as ways to further deepen ties across various fields in pursuit of their joint interests.