Yemen's Houthis say fired drone at southern Saudi air base

DUBAI (Reuters) - Yemen's Houthi forces on Wednesday launched a drone at a military air base in the southern Saudi Arabian city of Khamis Mushait, the group's military spokesman said on Twitter.

A Saudi-led coalition battling the Iran-aligned movement said Saudi Arabian air defences had intercepted and destroyed a drone fired towards the kingdom, state news agency SPA said earlier on Wednesday.

The military coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 against the Houthis after they ousted the internationally recognised government from the capital Sanaa.

The group, which holds most of northern Yemen, has kept up cross-border attacks on Saudi cities after Riyadh last month presented a ceasefire proposal by the United Nations and the United States.

The Houthis said the deal did not go far enough in fully lifting a sea and air blockade on territories held by the group, which controls most big urban centres.

The conflict is largely seen in the region as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The Houthis say they are fighting a corrupt system and foreign aggression.

(Reporting by Ghaida Ghantous; Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Ana Nicolaci da Costa)