SAUDI Arabia is to invest over $500 million in development projects in Yemen, the Gulf monarchy’s defence minister said on Wednesday, after Riyadh-backed forces in recent weeks repelled an offensive by separatists supported by the United Arab Emirates.

The Saudi defence minister, Prince Khalid bin Salman, wrote on the social media platform X of the launch of “development projects and initiatives in vital sectors at a cost of 1.9 billion riyals ($506 million)” across 10 Yemeni governorates.

The projects, to be delivered by the Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen, include the construction of Yemen’s first desalination plant, the restoration of the airport in southern city Aden, the opening of a hospital on the island of Socotra and the construction and equipping of 30 schools, he said.

— AFP