U.S. condemns Houthi missile attack on Riyadh

WASHINGTON, Dec. 20 (Xinhua) -- The United States "strongly condemns" the Houthi missile attack on Saudi capital city of Riyadh earlier Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert on Tuesday said in a statement.

Yemen's Houthi movement on Tuesday announced that it had fired a ballistic missile towards a royal palace in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, Houthi-controlled state Saba news agency reported.

On the same day, Saudi Arabia accused Iran of trafficking missiles to Yemen, indicating that the missile intercepted 25 km away from Riyadh was made in Iran.

The attack is "reckless," Nauert said, adding that Washington remains "deeply disturbed by aggressive Houthi actions."

Accusing Iran of providing advanced weapons to the Houthis, Nauert noted that such actions "threaten regional security and prolong the Yemen conflict."

"A political solution is the only way to advance long-term stability in Yemen and end the suffering of the Yemeni people," she said. "We urge all parties to immediately cease hostilities, avoid retaliatory measures and return to political negotiations under the auspices of the United Nations."

Saying that Washington "remains deeply concerned by the dire humanitarian conditions in Yemen," she urged all parties to facilitate the free and unfettered flow of humanitarian aid and commercial goods, including fuel, into and throughout Yemen."

The U.S. accusations that Tehran supplies missiles to Yemeni Shiite Houthis were refuted by Tehran repeatedly. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Saturday dismissed them as "baseless" allegations. Enditem