Two Saudi Pilots Die in Helicopter Crash Near Yemen Border

Two Saudi military pilots have been killed after a helicopter crashed in the kingdom’s southern Najran region near the border with Yemen, amid escalating hostilities between Saudi Arabia and Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis said on Sunday that the crash was caused by a technical malfunction, while the rebels claimed they had shot down the aircraft.

According to the Saudi Press Agency, coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said the aircraft was an AH-6i reconnaissance helicopter belonging to the Ministry of National Guard.

“The accident resulted in the martyrdom of its aircrew, consisting of two officers,” al-Malki was quoted as saying.

However, Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree had announced late on Saturday that the group had downed an Apache helicopter belonging to what he described as the “Saudi enemy” in the same area.

The conflicting accounts of the incident emerged as the conflict between the Saudi-backed coalition and the Houthis intensified following the collapse of a fragile, four-year truce.

The latest violence follows a series of attacks and counter-attacks involving Saudi Arabia and the rebels, who reportedly seized strategic territory along Yemen’s Red Sea coast last month.

The Houthis have also targeted Saudi interests, including oil facilities, tankers in the Red Sea and King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.

The helicopter crash came a week after strikes attributed to the Iran-backed group reportedly killed 13 people at Riyadh’s international airport, marking the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade.

The coalition also said it intercepted two drones in the Riyadh area and another over the oil-rich Eastern Province overnight. It added that two ballistic missiles launched towards Khamis Mushait in southern Saudi Arabia were intercepted.

Meanwhile, the Houthis reported on Saturday that Saudi airstrikes had killed 12 people in Yemen, including three children.

The group has also declared a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia and seized territory around the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a strategic chokepoint linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and a major route for international shipping.

The renewed hostilities have heightened regional tensions, with Egypt considering a possible role in supporting Saudi Arabia’s defence against Houthi attacks.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has asked parliament to authorise support for Saudi Arabia, prompting an emergency legislative session scheduled for Sunday.

Sisi said Egypt was prepared to take measures to protect the kingdom if requested by its leadership, stressing that the proposed action was defensive rather than an attempt to initiate hostilities.

“I’m not talking about fighting anyone or attacking anyone,” he said on Saturday. “We are speaking only about defence.”

The developments underscore growing security concerns in the region as the conflict involving Saudi Arabia and the Houthis threatens to disrupt shipping routes and further destabilise the Middle East.