Explained: the Houthi missiles and drones hitting Saudi Arabia

Yemen’s Houthis have built up a missile and drone arsenal that lets them strike Saudi Arabia again and again, as the kingdom and the Yemeni government it backs are finding out.

Since early September, the Houthis have hit key oil infrastructure and airports across Saudi Arabia, notably Riyadh’s airport, which has been targeted 20 times, Dawn reported, citing AFP. They have also, unsuccessfully, targeted the cities of Madina and Makkah.

How the war restarted

The trigger for their return to hostilities, after a four-year truce, was a Saudi bombardment of Sanaa airport in July to stop a Houthi delegation from landing there, according to AFP.

“The Houthis framed this campaign as blockade for blockade, airport for airport, escalation for escalation,” said April Longley Alley, a Yemen specialist at the Washington Institute think tank.

Where the weapons come from

The group’s missiles come partly from arsenals seized when it took Sanaa in 2014, as well as “whole systems smuggled in, or self-manufactured systems built from parts that were themselves smuggled into Yemen, primarily via the Arabian Sea”, said Niranjan BS, a strategic weapons analyst at Jane’s.

“Missile and UAV parts are designed and manufactured in Iran and smuggled into Yemen via small boats, container ships, or over the Oman-Yemen border, where they are assembled,” the Middle East Institute said. Iran has officially denied arming the Houthis in violation of a UN embargo.

What is in the arsenal

• Medium-range ballistic missiles: several types, many derived from Iranian models such as the Kheibar Shekan, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies
• Anti-ship missiles: short-range missiles such as the Asef, derived from Iran’s Khalij Fars class, the Wilson Centre said
• Cruise missiles: a range from Iran’s Quds family, with the Quds-4 believed to reach 2,000 kilometres
• Attack drones: the Waeid-1 and Waeid-2 are “local copies of the Iranian Shahed-131 and Shahed-136 one-way attack UAVs”, Niranjan said
• Sea drones: maritime drones, some derived from Iranian designs, along with explosive-laden fast boats

The Houthis are also using these weapons to hit targets around the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the entrance to the Red Sea.

Help from abroad

“Iran has provided critical military assistance to the Houthis, particularly with the delivery of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems,” the Middle East Institute said. In June 2024, the US Treasury sanctioned a man in China it said played “a key role in procuring materials that enable Houthi forces to manufacture advanced conventional weapons inside Yemen”.

Saudi Arabia this week accused Iran of encouraging the latest escalation and continuing to arm and train the group.

Built to last

“We need to remember with the Houthis that they have withstood punishing air campaigns before, from the Saudis, from the Americans, and from the Israelis,” Longley Alley said. “This is a battle-hardened group, and they have much less to lose than the Saudis.”

“The Houthis are probably calculating that they can go longer because they’re used to absorbing these strikes,” she added.

Why it matters

Cheap drones and smuggled missiles are giving the Houthis the power to threaten the world’s biggest oil exporter and the airports that millions of pilgrims use. Pakistan has condemned the attacks and stands with Saudi Arabia under the Makkah pact. Read our reports on Saudi Arabia’s accusation against Iran and on Pakistan’s statement at the UN Security Council.

This article draws on reporting by Dawn and AFP.