The Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen’s Houthis accused the rebels on Wednesday of targeting Islam’s holy city Mecca, sparking outrage across the Muslim world and deepening the conflict roiling the region.
Fighting flared in July when the Houthis, who have for years controlled swathes of northern Yemen, launched a large-scale offensive against Yemeni government forces. US media reported last week that the Saudi crown prince made a personal request to President Donald Trump for US intervention, but was turned down. Fresh fighting between the Iran-backed Houthis and Saudi-backed Yemeni government has dragged in Riyadh, with the Houthis declaring a maritime blockade on the kingdom and targeting its ships in the Red Sea.
The conflict in the Arabian Peninsula’s poorest country has forced 82,000 people to flee their homes since the start of September, according to the United Nations. Canal revenues are currently around half of what they were before the Houthis first started attacking Red Sea shipping in 2023, a campaign they said was in solidarity with Palestinians during Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. Earlier reporting noted: The drone, intercepted on Tuesday evening, was the second Houthi attempt to target Mecca after a ballistic missile launch in July 2017, spokesperson Turki al-Malki said in a statement, as reported by news agency Reuters.
“The security of the Two Holy Mosques and the pilgrims is a red line, and the Joint Forces Command of the Coalition will not hesitate to take the necessary and deterrent measures against the Terrorist Houthi Militia,” the coalition said in a statement shared by spokesman Turki al-Maliki on X. Yemen’s permanent representative at the UN, Abdullah al-Saadi, said Yemenis were fighting to restore “national institutions across every inch of their land”, and called on the international community to take action against the Houthis. De facto Saudi leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called on Tuesday for “ensuring the freedom and security of maritime navigation” through the Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab — which links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, the Egyptian presidency said.
