Saudi-led coalition says 2 pilots killed in helicopter crash near Yemen

Why This Matters

Key context: <p>The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis on Sunday said two pilots were killed when their helicopter crashed near the Yemen border, after the group claimed it shot the aircraft down.</p> <p>The coalition blamed a “technical malfunction” for the incident, which inflicted its first military fatalities since the long-running conflict with the Houthis reignited in July.</p> <figure class='media w-full sm:w-1/2 media--right media--embed media--uneven' data-original-src='https://www.dawn.com/news/2015162'> <div class='media__item media__item--newskitlink '> <iframe class="nk-iframe" width="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="height:250px;position:relative" src="https://www.dawn.com/news/card/2015162" sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms"></iframe></div> </figure> <p>The incident comes a week after strikes by the Houthis <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2036412/pakistani-national-killed-11-wounded-as-riyadh-airport-hit-by-houthi-strike">killed 13 people</a> at Riyadh’s international airport, the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade.</p> <p>“An AH-6i reconnaissance helicopter belonging to the Ministry of National Guard crashed inside Saudi territory in Najran Region due to a technical malfunction,” coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said, according to the official <em>Saudi Press Agency</em>.</p> <p>“The accident resulted in the martyrdom of its aircrew, consisting of two officers.”</p> <p>Late on Saturday, Houthi spokesman <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" class="link--external" href="https://x.com/Yah_Saree/status/2111515259228028982">Yahya Saree</a> claimed the group had “downed an Apache helicopter belonging to the Saudi enemy” in the same area.</p> <figure class='media w-full w-full media-- media--embed media--uneven media--tweet' data-original-src='https://x.com/Yah_Saree/status/2111515259228028982'> <div class='media__item media__item--twitter '><span> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"> <a href="https://twitter.com/Yah_Saree/status/2111515259228028982"></a> </blockquote> </span></div> </figure> <p>After an uneasy, four-year truce, Yemen’s conflict has surged back to life and intensified when the group seized strategic territory along the Red Sea coast last month.</p> <p>The Houthis have hit Saudi targets including tankers in the <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2029275">Red Sea</a>, <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2037136">oil facilities</a> and Riyadh’s <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2037152">King Khalid International Airport</a>.</p> <p>The Saudi-led coalition backing the internationally recognised government has launched repeated air raids on Houthi territory.</p> <figure class='media w-full sm:w-1/2 media--right media--embed media--uneven' data-original-src='https://www.dawn.com/news/1670170'> <div class='media__item media__item--newskitlink '> <iframe class="nk-iframe" width="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="height:250px;position:relative" src="https://www.dawn.com/news/card/1670170" sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms"></iframe></div> </figure> <p>The coalition said overnight that it intercepted two drones in the Riyadh area and a third over the oil-rich Eastern Province. Saudi authorities had earlier issued a threat alert in the capital.</p> <p>Two ballistic missiles “launched by the terrorist Houthi militia towards Khamis Mushait” were intercepted in the kingdom’s south, the coalition added.</p> <p>On Saturday, the Houthis reported that Saudi strikes <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2037848">killed 12 people</a> in Yemen, including three children.</p> <figure class='media w-full sm:w-1/2 media--right media--embed media--uneven' data-original-src='https://www.dawn.com/news/2032961'> <div class='media__item media__item--newskitlink '> <iframe class="nk-iframe" width="100%" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="height:250px;position:relative" src="https://www.dawn.com/news/card/2032961" sandbox="allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-popups allow-modals allow-forms"></iframe></div> </figure> <p>The Houthis have declared a <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2016977">maritime blockade</a> on Saudi Arabia and captured territory around the <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2034934">Bab al-Mandeb</a> strait, the Red Sea chokepoint and vital export route for Saudi oil since Iran blockaded the Gulf’s Strait of Hormuz.</p> <p>On Sunday, Egypt’s parliament will hold an emergency session after President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi asked lawmakers to authorise support to defend Saudi Arabia against Houthi attacks.</p> <p>Sisi said he was <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2037985/egypt-ready-to-defend-saudi-arabia-against-houthis">willing</a> to “carry out any measure to protect” Saudi Arabia if its leaders requested it. “I’m not talking about fighting anyone or attacking anyone,” he said on Saturday. “We are speaking only about defence.”</p> This development from dawn.com highlights ongoing changes in the sector.