Iran denies Saudi accusation of involvement in Houthi attacks, offers to mediate

Says it is prepared to mediate between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, but has yet to receive a positive response

Iran's foreign ministry on Friday rejected Saudi Arabia's accusation that Tehran was involved in Houthi attacks on the kingdom, offering to mediate between the two sides.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran rejects any claim that Iran has played a role in Yemeni (Houthi) operations," foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in a statement.

He said Iran is ready to use its diplomatic capacity to help resolve differences between Saudi Arabia and Yemen if both sides request it

“The Islamic Republic of Iran has always been ready to use its good offices to help bring the conflict to an end, and remains prepared to use all its capacities for this purpose if requested by both sides,” Baqaei said.

Referring to the history of the war between Saudi Arabia and Yemen, he said developments over the past 12 years had demonstrated that foreign intervention, military aggression and blockade were not solutions to Yemen’s problems.

Baghaei said regional countries and the broader Islamic world were expected to make serious efforts to bring the situation to an end.

Meanwhile, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh told Al Mayadeen that Tehran had offered Saudi Arabia to help mediate the dispute but had yet to receive a positive response.

“Today, our foreign minister and our government have offered any kind of assistance — mediation assistance, of course — but so far we have not received any positive response,” he said.

Houthi commander killed in clashes with Yemeni govt forces

Earlier on Friday, a Houthi commander was killed in clashes with Yemeni government forces near Mount Han in the southwestern city of Taiz, a Yemeni official said.

Fayyad al-Noman, a Yemeni media spokesman, said on US social media platform X that Abdulrahman Mohammed Sufyan Wajih al-Din, also known as Abu al-Karrar, was killed by government troops near Mount Han.

Al-Noman identified the slain Houthi commander as a brigadier general and director of Dhi al-Sufal in the Ibb province.

He did not specify when the incident occurred or provide further details on the circumstances of the killing.

There was no immediate comment from the Houthis.

Taiz has remained a major front line in Yemen's conflict, with government forces and the Houthis engaged in repeated clashes around the city.

Saudi-led coalition intercepts drone targeting kingdom’s east

The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said early on Friday that it intercepted and destroyed a drone heading toward Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province, while Houthi-affiliated media reported artillery shelling in Yemen's northern border province of Saada.

In a brief statement, the coalition announced the interception without identifying who launched the drone or specifying its intended target.

The statement provided no details on casualties or damage.

Separately, the Houthi-affiliated Al-Masirah TV channel reported artillery shelling in parts of Al-Dhaher district, which borders Saudi Arabia, in Saada province.

The reports came amid continued military escalation between the Saudi-led coalition and the Houthis.

On Thursday, the coalition announced the interception of a cruise missile over the Madinah region in western Saudi Arabia.

Read: Pakistan condemns Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, calls for immediate halt at UN

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree denied that the group had carried out any attacks against Saudi territory that day.

A day earlier, the coalition said it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis toward the capital Riyadh, where falling debris injured one person and caused minor property damage.

The latest incidents follow a wave of attacks on Saudi airports and energy facilities.

Saudi Arabia has led a military coalition supporting Yemen’s internationally recognised government since 2015 against the Houthis, who have controlled Sanaa and several other provinces since 2014.

The current escalation began in July after a period of relative calm following a UN-brokered truce that started in April 2022.

Coalition says Houthis are getting missiles, fast boats

As Saudi Arabia backs government forces, the Houthis have been firing ballistic missiles and drones at Saudi airports, ports and ‌oil installations, ⁠turning US ally Saudi Arabia into a pressure point in the wider war and threatening its ambitious economic plans.

On Thursday, the Saudi-led military coalition said the Houthis had attempted to attack dozens of such sites, highlighting the risk to Saudi civilian infrastructure. The governing council of the UN's International Civil Aviation Organisation condemned the recent attacks on civilian airports, aircraft, and aviation infrastructure in Saudi Arabia.

Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Maliki told reporters that the Houthis had launched 20 attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh this month, killing 17 people and wounding 333 ​others. The airport is one of Saudi Arabia's ​main international aviation hubs.

The coalition said ⁠Houthi attacks on Abha airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia near the Yemeni border had killed three people and wounded 28.

Maliki said the Houthis had acquired advanced military technology with the help of "regional actors," including ballistic missiles, drones and explosive-laden fast boats.

Iran has provided weapons, money and ​training to the Houthis, although Tehran has officially denied arming them in violation of a UN arms embargo.

Maliki also said the ​coalition had destroyed 127 ⁠weapons storage facilities and launch platforms in Yemen's mountainous areas, calling on the Houthis to immediately halt operations targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure.

Shortly afterwards, the Houthi military spokesperson said Saudi airspace and airports were unsafe, renewing a warning to airlines while excluding airspace over the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

Saudi Arabia's civil defence authority issued early-warning alerts throughout Thursday over potential threats ⁠in the ​cities of Najran and Jizan, as well as the wider Najran and Jazan regions, before later saying the ​danger had passed.

The Saudi-led coalition said on Thursday that it had intercepted and destroyed a drone in the southwestern Saudi Arabian city of Khamis Mushait, and another launched towards the country's southern region.