WASHINGTON, Shawwal 21, 1436, August 6, 2015, SPA -- The United States said Thursday that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has the right to defend itself against the Houthi militias. Asked by a reporter at the daily State Department briefing, spokesperson Mark Toner said that since Houthi rebels have launched attacks from across the Yemeni border, the kingdom has a right to respond with force against such a threat. “The Saudi-led coalition has undertaken military operations at the request of the government of Yemen to stop Houthi efforts to take over Yemen by force,” Toner said. “So again … since the Houthis and their allies have conducted repeated armed infiltrations into Saudi territory, and fired mortar rockets across the Saudi border that killed both Saudi civilians and security personnel, Saudi Arabia has a right to defend itself.” However, Toner noted, “we need a political solution in Yemen.” “And so, we continue to support the United Nations and the U.N. special envoy for Yemen in their efforts to mediate a peaceful solution that will return all parties to political dialogue process,” Toner said. --SPA 02:12 LOCAL TIME 23:12 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w