Saudi Arabia reserves the right to take military actions if necessary, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said early Thursday morning, after the country's air defenses intercepted four ballistic missiles launched towards Riyadh on Wednesday evening.
Foreign ministers from a number of Arab and Islamic countries had been holding a meeting on regional security and stability when the missiles were intercepted.
The meeting, hosted by Saudi Arabia in Riyadh, brought together the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Pakistan, Türkiye, Syria, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon and Egypt.
Speaking at a press conference, Faisal gave a strong response to the attacks launched by Iran, saying the Saudi side will take necessary action if required and backfire.
"We'll backfire politically. We'll backfire, I believe, morally and certainly. As we have stated quite clearly, we have reserved the right to take military actions if deemed necessary. And if the time comes, the leadership of the kingdom will take the necessary decision. We will not shy away from protecting our country and our economic resources"
Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Defense said in a post on the social media platform X that four ballistic missiles launched toward Riyadh were intercepted and destroyed, and "part of one ballistic missile fell near a refinery south of Riyadh."
Tensions have been inflamed in the Middle East after the United States and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran starting Feb 28, with Iran retaliating by firing back with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel and U.S. assets and bases across the region.
Saudi Arabia reserves right to take military response: foreign minister
Saudi Arabia reserves right to take military response: foreign minister
An Israeli airstrike hit a Lebanese residential area in central Beirut on Wednesday, killing at least 10 people and causing significant destruction.
The attack on the Al-Bashoora neighborhood was part of a deadly wave of overnight Israeli strikes that stretched from the Lebanese capital through the country's southern and eastern parts, which left at least 27 dead and an specified number wounded, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health.
The strike caused extensive damage across the neighborhood, where a 10-storey building collapsed and many vehicles were wrecked.
Lebanon has been drawn into the Middle East conflict since March 2 when the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group launched rockets towards Israel, the first time that such attack has taken place since a ceasefire was declared in November 2024, in response to the joint United States-Israeli strikes that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The conflict between Hezbollah and Israel has since become the deadliest front in the U.S.-Israeli military operations against Iran embroiling the entire region.
As crews worked to clear slabs of concrete and debris of collapsed buildings in the attacked Al-Bashoora neighborhood, a resident condemned Israel for indiscriminately striking civilian targets.
"We were at the Abu al-Fadl cafe -- it's a well-known spot where we gather and stay up late -- when they warned the building's residents to evacuate. As usual, we took the women and children and moved them to a nearby building, where they spent the night. They claim it's a strike against Hezbollah, but there's no Hezbollah presence in this area. They say Hezbollah is hiding money there, but why would they put money here, especially after this area was already targeted in the 2024 war? They are lying," he told China Global Television Network (CGTN) in an interview in the vicinity of the smoldering ruins.
As of Wednesday, the intensifying Israeli strikes have killed nearly 970 people, wounded over 2,400 others, and driven hundreds of thousands from their homes across Lebanon, said the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health.
In the face of the deadly strikes, another resident of the Al-Bashoora neighborhood sent a defiant message to the U.S. and Israeli leaders.
"Our message to [U.S. President Donald] Trump is this: we will defeat you and we will defeat the West, because you will not be able to defeat us. The people of the South cannot be defeated, no matter how many fleets, tanks, and aircraft you bring. In the end, we are the rightful owners of this land, and we will defeat you. No colonizer has ever set foot here without us driving them out. They cannot remain on our land. Even if the entire U.S. fleet comes to Beirut, we will defeat them," he said.
Israeli airstrike kills at least 10 in central Beirut residential area
