ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis said Friday it intercepted three drones and three missiles over Riyadh, southern areas of Saudi Arabia, the Red Sea, and the coastal city of Yanbu.

"We intercepted and destroyed three drones in the southern area and Riyadh... and two cruise missiles over the Red Sea," coalition spokesperson Turki al-Malki wrote on X.

He added that "in the past hours, we intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile over Yanbu", a Red Sea coastal city that hosts the terminus of a major oil pipeline.

The latest interceptions follow a Houthi strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport on October 10 that killed 12 people and injured more than 300, prompting widespread international condemnation and expressions of support for Saudi Arabia’s security.

The long-range Houthi attacks come amid a counteroffensive by Yemen’s Saudi-backed government, which is seeking to dislodge the rebels from the coastline along the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The Iran-backed Houthis have sought to impose a maritime blockade on Saudi shipping through the Red Sea.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Friday during a presser that Tehran is ready to help resolve "disputes between Saudi Arabia and Yemen" if the parties request assistance, while rejecting claims of Iranian involvement in Yemeni military operations

The conflict between Riyadh and the Houthis had lain largely dormant since a UN-brokered ceasefire in 2022. However, the latter group blamed Saudi Arabia for an airstrike on Sanaa International Airport in July, setting in motion a chain of events that culminated in a large-scale Houthi offensive that expanded their effective control over war-wracked Yemen.

US President Donald Trump has spoken of potentially entering the conflict to support Riyadh following the recent airport strikes, leading Houthi politburo member Mohammed Al Bukhaiti to tell AFP on Monday that, should Washington directly intervene, "there will be a swift and painful response targeting the US and all its interests in the region."