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The Saudi-led coalition on Wednesday warned that the security of Islam's two holiest sites is a "red line" after Saudi air defences intercepted and destroyed a drone launched by Yemen's Houthi in the south of the holy city of Makkah Al-Mukarramah, popularly known as Mecca.
According to a statement issued by the coalition on Wednesday, the Royal Saudi Air Defence Forces intercepted the drone in the evening on Tuesday, before it could enter the prohibited airspace around Mecca. Coalition spokesman Major General Turki Al-Malki described the incident as a "hostile and terrorist act", saying the drone had been launched by what he called the "Terrorist Houthi Militia". "The security of the Two Holy Mosques and the pilgrims is a red line," Al-Malki said, adding that the Joint Forces Command of the Coalition "will not hesitate to take the necessary and deterrent measures" against the Houthi movement. The coalition said the incident represented the second attempt to target Mecca, referring to a previous attempt involving a ballistic missile on July 27, 2017. Calling the latest incident an attempt to target "the birthplace of revelation, the land of the message, and the destination that draws the hearts of millions of Muslims from around the world", Al-Malki said it was also an attempt to terrorise pilgrims and harm citizens and residents. The Saudi statement comes amid an intensifying exchange of accusations between the coalition forces as well as Riyadh and the Houthis over military operations in Yemen. In a statement posted on Telegram on Tuesday, before the attempted strikes, Houthi military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree said Saudi warplanes had carried out 52 airstrikes over the preceding 24 hours using F-15 and Typhoon aircraft operating from Khamis Mushait and Taif airbases. Saree alleged that the strikes hit civilian infrastructure, including schools, bridges and roads in Taiz governorate, as well as other targets in Al-Jawf, Al-Bayda, Saada and Amran governorates. The claims were not independently substantiated in the statements cited. "These brutal attacks will not go unanswered," Saree said in the statement. The latest developments come as the West Asia conflict expands into Yemen and the Saudi-Houthi theatre, adding to tensions around the strategically important Bab-el-Mandeb Strait. The Houthis have also targeted commercial vessels in the maritime corridor, making the waterway a major point of concern amid the wider regional escalation. The Saudi-led coalition's warning over Mecca marks a further escalation in the rhetoric between Riyadh and the Houthi movement. (ANI)
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