Saudi Arabia says Houthi missile intercepted from Yemen

Saudi Arabia on Tuesday said its air defences had intercepted a missile fired from Houthi rebel-held territory in neighbouring Yemen, where a military coalition led by Riyadh is battling the rebels.

A coalition statement said the ballistic missile targeted al-Shuqaiq on the kingdom's southwestern coastline. The area, located in Jazan province, is home to a major water and power plant.

The Houthi rebels said a short-range ballistic missile had been fired at a military "supply depot" on Saudi Arabia's western coast.

The Iran-backed Houthis have ramped up missile attacks against Saudi Arabia in recent months.

The kingdom usually says it has intercepted the missiles and has reported one casualty.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and other allies intervened in the conflict between Yemen's government and rebels in March 2015, aiming to push back the Houthis and restore the internationally-recognised government to power.

In 2014, the northern rebels drove the government of President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi out of the capital and seized control of much of northern Yemen as well as a string of ports on the Red Sea.

Yemeni pro-government forces - backed by Saudi Arabia and the UAE - have been locked in heavy battles with Houthi rebels for weeks over the Red Sea city of Hodeida, home to a rebel-held port that is a key aid hub.

Saudi Arabia last month tested a new siren system for Riyadh and the oil-rich Eastern Province, in a sign of the growing threat posed by the rebels' arms.

Riyadh accuses its regional rival Tehran of supplying the Houthis with ballistic missiles, a charge Iran denies.

At least 10,000 people have been killed in Yemen's civil war, which has displaced two million people, helped spawn a cholera epidemic, and created the world's worst humanitarian crisis, according to the UN.

Saudi-led airstrikes have killed large numbers of civilians and damaged vital infrastructure.

The coalition also has blocked most ports, letting supplies into Hodeida in coordination with the UN.

The air campaign and fighting have disrupted other supply lines, causing an economic crisis that makes food too expensive for many to afford.