RIYADH — The Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia intercepted a Houthi drone targeting Khamis Mushait on Thursday, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

"The drone targeting civilians in the city of Khamis Mushait has been intercepted and destroyed," coalition spokesman Turki Al-Maliki was quoted as saying.

The Iran-backed Houthi militia launched the drone from Sanaa province in Yemen toward civilian areas in Khamis Mushait, Al-Maliki added.

Houthi militia's claims that King Khalid airbase was targeted are false and they reflect the militia's desperation, Al-Maliki claimed.

He called the attack as "another act by the militias that is akin to a war crime".

Nine civilians were wounded in a July 3 Houthi attack on Abha airport in the south of the Kingdom, the coalition said.

A June 12 missile attack on the same airport wounded 26 civilians, drawing warnings of "stern action" from the coalition.

And on June 23, a rebel attack on Abha airport killed a Syrian and wounded 21 other civilians, the coalition said. — SPA with input from agencies