Saudi Arabia destroys Houthi ballistic missile fired from Yemen

Saudi air defences destroyed a ballistic missile fired by Houthi rebels in Yemen over the southern city of Jazan on Monday.

The Saudi-led coalition said that defence forces destroyed the missile over Jazan and accused the Houthi rebels of targeting residential areas, according to a report from the official Saudi Press Agency.

Earlier, the Iran-allied Houthis said they had fired a Badr-1 ballistic missile at Jazan's airport.

In recent months the group has fired a series of missiles at the kingdom, part of a three-year conflict in Yemen widely seen as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

The Houthis have become increasingly daring in their attacks on Saudi Arabia, including attempted strikes on the capital Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia has previously responded to missile attacks with devastating airstrikes.

Since March 2015, Riyadh has led a coalition of Arab states fighting to roll back the Houthis in Yemen and restore its neighbour's internationally-recognised government to power.

Nearly 10,000 people have since been killed in the conflict, in what the United Nations has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis.