ADEN, Yemen, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- Air defenses of the Saudi Arabia-led coalition destroyed two ballistic missiles fired by the Houthi rebels at the Red Sea coastal city of Hodeidah, a Yemeni government official told Xinhua Saturday.
The Houthi rebels targeted the government-controlled areas in Durayhmi of Hodeidah province, but the Saudi-led air defenses aborted the ballistic missile attack successfully, the government source said on condition of anonymity.
"The Saudi-led coalition protected the thousands of citizens living in government-controlled areas and destroyed the two missiles over the city's airspace," the government source said.
Media outlets affiliated with the United Arab Emirates, which is leading the anti-Houthi offensive in Hodeidah, reported that a drone loaded with explosives was destroyed on its way towards the city.
No casualties were reported as a result of the two coordinated Houthi attacks against government-controlled areas in Hodeidah.
Earlier in the day, sources of the pro-government Giants Brigades confirmed to Xinhua that the Houthi fighters launched an all-out attack against key military positions belonging to the Saudi-led coalition forces in Hodeidah.
The Houthi group lost scores of its fighters during the attack that was repulsed by the Saudi-led coalition forces after intense airstrikes.
The Yemeni government is seeking to expel Houthi rebels out of the strategic city of Hodeidah in recent days despite warnings by international humanitarian agencies.
The impoverished Arab country has been locked into a civil war since the Iran-backed Shiite Houthi rebels overran much of the country militarily and seized all northern provinces, including the capital Sanaa, in 2014.
Saudi Arabia is leading an Arab military coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 to support the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after Houthi rebels forced him into exile.
The United Nations has listed Yemen as the country with world's biggest humanitarian crisis, with 7 million Yemenis on the brink of famine and cholera causing more than 2,000 deaths.
