Sanaa, Mar 30 (IANS): Yemen's Houthi militias have claimed responsibility for the cross-border botched attacks on Saudi Arabia.

On Sunday, a spokesman for the militias said othat missile and drone attacks hit "sensitive targets" in Riyadh, Jizan and Najran, without giving further details, reports Xinhua news agency reported.

Earlier in the day, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said the the country's air defences intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthi militias towards "civilian targets" in Riyadh and Jizan on Saturday night.

The escalation came days after the Houthis welcomed a call by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for a ceasefire between the Yemeni rival parties.

Guterres called on the Yemeni warring parties to focus on reaching a negotiated political settlement and do everything possible to counter a potential outbreak of the novel coronavirus.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014, when the Iran-backed Houthi group seized control of much of the country's north and forced the Saudi-backed government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi out of the capital Sanaa.

The Saudi-led military coalition intervened in the Yemeni conflict on March 26, 2015 to support Hadi's internationally-recognized government.