Saudi-led coalition warns civilians in Sanaa to evacuate ahead of ‘special operation’

Riyadh, October 13 (IANS) The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said on Tuesday that it would issue a warning for civilians to evacuate a site in the Houthi-held Yemeni capital Sanaa ahead of a "special operation."Coalition spokesman Turki Al-Maliki said on social media platform X that the warning would be issued shortly, without providing further details about the site or the operation.Also on Tuesday, the coalition said it had intercepted and destroyed three drones north of the Saudi capital Riyadh, Xinhua News Agency reported.Yemen's Houthi group said Monday evening that it had launched a new ballistic missile strike on King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital Riyadh, while Tehran reiterated its readiness to facilitate dialogue between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis.Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a statement that the group targeted the Riyadh airport with a ballistic missile, claiming the missile "accurately hit" the target.He said the group also launched a drone attack on King Khalid Air Base in Khamis Mushait, southwestern Saudi Arabia, claiming a direct hit.Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition said in a statement that its forces had intercepted and destroyed a Houthi ballistic missile fired toward Riyadh on Monday evening.Explosions were heard in the Saudi capital around the time of the reported attack, and residents received alerts via mobile apps.The escalation has sparked mounting regional and international concern.At a weekly press conference on Monday, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran has "repeatedly expressed readiness to use our good offices to facilitate dialogue between the (warring) parties."His remarks came a day after Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, in a phone conversation with his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah Al Saud on Sunday, voiced Iran's readiness to provide "any kind of assistance" to help initiate dialogue between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis.