The United States condemned on Thursday the terrorist attack carried out by the Iran-backed Houthi militias in Yemen against Saudi Arabia's Abha International Airport.
US national security advisor Jake Sullivan said in a statement: "The Houthis have claimed responsibility for this attack, and we will work with our Saudi and international partners to hold them accountable."
As President Joe Biden told Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz by telephone on Wednesday, "we are committed to supporting Saudi Arabia in the defense of its people and territory from these attacks," he added.
"America will have the backs of our friends in the region," he vowed.
King Salman and Biden stressed during their telephone call their commitment to maintaining cooperation in the fight against terrorism and its sources of funding.
King Salman hailed Biden's commitment to supporting Saudi Arabia defend its territories and protect its citizens.
The US has stressed in several official statements its commitment to its partnership with the Gulf. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are its most prominent partners and they have both come under attack by the Houthis.
Last week, the Pentagon announced it will deploy a guided missile destroyer and state-of-the-art fighter jets to help defend the UAE after a series of missile attacks by the militias.
State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Thursday Washington is "committed to working with the UAE and Saudi Arabia to help them bolster their defenses."
"We’re doing that through security cooperation, through arms transfers, defense trade, exercises, training, and exchanges. And those exchanges are in terms of security and defense, but also in terms of human rights and the protection of civilians, including civilian harm mitigation," he told a press briefing.
Yemen, meanwhile, strongly condemned the Houthi attack on Abha.
The foreign ministry slammed the Houthis for targeting a civilian airport, which is protected by international humanitarian law, deeming the attack a war crime.
The development demonstrates the Houthis' criminality and violation of international humanitarian law and norms, it said.
It called on the international community to assume its responsibilities and take a decisive stance against the Houthis' terrorist behavior in the region, saying they must be designated as terrorist.
It expressed the Yemeni government's firm support to Saudi Arabia and all the measures it takes to protect its security and safety of its civilians and residents.
