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

The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis on Sunday said two pilots were killed when their helicopter crashed because of a “technical malfunction” near the border with Yemen, the first military fatalities since hostilities restarted in July.

“An AH-6i reconnaissance helicopter belonging to the national guard crashed and was destroyed in Saudi territory in the Najran area as a result of a technical malfunction, resulting in the death of its crew of two officers,” coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said, according to the official Saudi Press Agency.

After a four-year, uneasy truce, Yemen’s conflict reignited in July and intensified when the Iran-backed group seized strategic territory along the Red Sea coast last month.

The Saudi-led coalition backing the internationally recognised government has launched repeated air raids on Houthi territory.

The Houthis have hit Saudi targets including vessels in the Red Sea, oil facilities and Riyadh’s international airport, where 13 people were killed in a single attack last week.