Yemen’s Houthi rebel chief threatens to hit back over Saudi blockade

The leader of Yemen’s Houthi rebels threatened retaliation over a land, air and sea blockade imposed by a Saudi-led coalition supporting the government. On Thursday, rebel chief Abdulmalik al-Houthi warned against “prolonging the blockade” imposed after a November 4 Houthi missile attack that was intercepted near Riyadh International Airport, AFP reports. “Should the blockade continue, we know what [targets] would cause great pain and how to reach them,” he said in a speech broadcast on the rebels’ Al-Masirah television. The coalition allowed some supplies into Yemen at the weekend, but the UN on Monday renewed its call for Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies to further ease the blockade.