Saudi-Led Coalition Says It Intercepted 10 Houthi Ballistic Missiles Fired at Southern Saudi Arabia

The Saudi-led coalition says its forces intercepted and destroyed ten ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis towards Saudi Arabia’s southern region on Sunday 25 October 2026. The statement, posted on X by the coalition’s spokesman account at 11:46 local time and carried by the Saudi Press Agency, gave no launch times, interception sites or details of damage. The Houthis had not commented on the launches when this article was published.

What the coalition said

The coalition described the missiles as launched by the “terrorist Houthi militia” and said all ten were intercepted. It did not say which air defence systems were used, whether any debris fell on populated areas, or whether the missiles were fired in one salvo or over several hours. No casualties have been reported.

Earlier on Sunday, Saudi Civil Defence issued early-warning alerts for Abha city at 10:10 and Khamis Mushait governorate at 10:11 (Abha, Khamis Mushait), and for Tanumah governorate at 10:26 (Tanumah). It then announced that the danger had passed in Namas, Tanumah, Abha and Khamis Mushait between 10:26 and 10:30 (Khamis Mushait all-clear). All four are in Asir province in the south-west. The coalition statement did not link the alerts to the ten missiles, and it is not clear whether they relate to the same launches. At 10:31 Civil Defence repeated an Interior Ministry warning that filming, publishing or sharing information about missile and drone interceptions or impact sites exposes people to legal liability.

A busy morning for Saudi air defences

Sunday’s statement is the third set of coalition interception claims in less than 12 hours:

• Overnight, the coalition said it shot down two drones in the Riyadh region and, at about 06:20 local time, a ballistic missile fired towards Riyadh (coalition on X; Middle East Eye).
• At 09:58 it said it intercepted a cruise missile fired towards Khamis Mushait, home to King Khalid Air Base (coalition on X; Anadolu Agency).
• At 11:46 it reported the ten ballistic missiles towards the southern region.

Taken together, the coalition’s own statements account for 11 ballistic missiles, one cruise missile and two drones on 25 October. That is a DefenceMENA tally of separate statements; the coalition has not published a daily total.

Riyadh airport reopens under threat

The attacks came on the day King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh resumed operations, with Terminal 1 handling domestic flights and Terminal 2 international flights by national carriers, after operations were halted following the 10 October attack (Arab News). Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree has renewed his warning to airlines and travellers against using the airport (Reuters via Al-Monitor). DefenceMENA’s running file on Houthi attacks on Saudi airports tracks the sequence.

Context

The Houthis have stepped up launches at Saudi territory this month, including missiles that Saudi Arabia said it intercepted near Mecca and Medina. Saudi Arabia’s ballistic-missile defences include the Patriot system, and British RAF Typhoons have deployed to support Saudi air defence. Neither the coalition nor the Saudi defence ministry has said how many interceptors have been used since the start of October.

What is not yet known

The coalition has not said where the ten missiles were intercepted, when they were launched or whether any caused damage on the ground. DefenceMENA will update this report if the coalition, Saudi authorities or the Houthis release further details.