Houthi Ballistic Missile Reaches Riyadh for the First Time; Aramco Facility Hit in Yanbu

In pre-dawn attacks on Sep 19, Houthi forces fired a ballistic missile at Riyadh — the first time the Saudi capital has been targeted since the front opened — which the Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted and destroyed, with no reported casualties or damage. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group carried out two "successful operations," targeting "sensitive sites" in Riyadh and Saudi Aramco infrastructure in the Red Sea port city of Yanbu with ballistic and cruise missiles and drones; a fire was reported at an Aramco fuel depot near King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. The coalition said further attempts to hit Bisha, Taif and Farasan were also thwarted. Coalition spokesperson Major-General Turki al-Malki said the attacks were fully repelled. Jordan condemned the strikes as a "blatant violation," and the UN Secretary-General and the GCC condemned the targeting of civilian infrastructure; the US renewed travel alerts for the region. Neither Pakistan nor Turkey took any military action under the Mecca pact.