According to reports on social media, an explosives-laden drone was intercepted Wednesday evening near Khamis Mushait, a city in Saudi Arabia's southwestern Asir Province, which borders Yemen.
Saudi state media confirmed the reports, saying the drone had targeted Abha International Airport and that debris from the explosion had fallen in the airport's vicinity.
Four airport workers were reportedly lightly injured during the incident, although reports did not say how, and several airport windows were also shattered.
The airport, one of the kingdom's closest to Yemen, has repeatedly been targeted by Houthi forces that control the Yemeni side of the border.
Since 2015, Saudi Arabia has led a coalition of Sunni Arab states against the Houthis, who are Zaidi Shiites and who threw Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, a Saudi ally, out of power in 2014. The war has killed at least 200,000 people directly or indirectly as of last December, according to the United Nations. The Saudis' devastating air war has been amplified by a blockade that has made food, medicine, and other supplies scarce, leading to the largest outbreak of cholera on record and widespread famine.
In recent years, the Houthis have attempted to turn the tide by bringing the war into Saudi Arabia itself, launching devastating missile and drone attacks targeting petroleum facilities, military bases and civilian installations.