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Houthis Target Mecca for Second Time in 3 Weeks | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Yemeni children walk amidst the rubble of a house in Sana’a on August 11, 2016. Mohammed Huwais/AFP


Jeddah-The command of the coalition forces to support the legitimacy in Yemen has announced that the Saudi Air Defense was able to intercept a ballistic missile launched by Houthi militias on Thursday evening from the province of Saada towards the Mecca area.

In a statement, the coalition said the ballistic missile was destroyed about 65 km away from Mecca without causing any damage.

It added that the coalition air forces then targeted the site from where the missile was launched.

Meanwhile, a high-ranking U.S. officer said his country has intercepted weapons shipments sent by Iran to Houthis in Yemen.

U.S. Vice Admiral Kevin Donegan said the shipments included assault riffles, sniper riffles, Kalashnikovs, anti-tanks missiles and other weapons.

“Either U.S. ships or coalition ships … intercepted four weapons shipments from Iran to Yemen,” Donegan said.

The Admiral said the four military shipments were intercepted on several phases since April 2015, when the Arab Coalition began its military operation to support the legitimate government in Yemen.

AFP quoted Donegan as saying that the naval officials were able to determine the destination of the boats by analyzing GPS settings and interviewing the crew.

Meanwhile, Yemen’s Prime Minister Ahmed bin Dagher asserted on Thursday that his government has not yet received a draft of U.N. envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed’s peace proposal.

Bin Dagher said that any proposal failing to respect the three references would be revised.

He said: “We are searching for a lasting peace based on the Gulf initiative and its executive mechanisms, Security Council resolution 2216 and the outputs of the national dialogue.”

Meanwhile, Houthi militias and their followers deliberately sold more than 2,000 tons of gasoline that were intended to run al-Hadidiyah Electricity station.

Also, Houthis threatened on Thursday to seize shops in the besieged city and to imprison merchants who fail to pay monthly fees to support the “Central Bank” and the “military efforts” of militias.