Saudi-led coalition launches 'large-scale' Yemen operation after deadly strike

The Saudi-led coalition on Saturday launched a "large-scale" assault on Yemen after a projectile killed two people in the kingdom, in the first such deaths in three years by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

The Houthis warned Yemen's oil-rich northern neighbour of a "painful" response if the coalition does not stop its "aggression" against the conflict-riven country.

Yemen has been wracked by civil war since 2014 pitting the internationally recognised government supported by the Saudi-led military coalition against the Houthis who control much of the north.

Tens of thousands of people have since been killed, in what the UN has described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

The latest violence came overnight when two people - one Saudi and the other Yemeni - were killed and seven others wounded in the projectile attack on Jazan, according to Saudi's civil defence.

"A military projectile fell on a commercial store on the main street, resulting in two deaths," it said, adding six Saudis and a Bangladeshi national were wounded.

Images from the official Saudi Press Agency purportedly of the aftermath of the attack showed a large crater in the ground and a number of destroyed vehicles.