Saudi-led coalition says it intercepted Houthi drone aimed at Mecca region

A Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen said on Friday that it had intercepted and destroyed a drone launched by the Houthis toward the Mecca region of Saudi Arabia. Coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said the drone was shot down on Friday morning, according to Al Jazeera.

The Houthis, an armed movement that holds much of northern Yemen, denied the account. They said they had launched no attack toward Saudi Arabia on Friday, and a Houthi spokesperson said the group had not targeted Mecca city or its surrounding region, as Reuters reported.

The spokesperson did describe the group's cross-border operations in a different light. According to the spokesperson, those operations target Saudi oil facilities and military bases.

Saudi Arabia has accused the Houthis of targeting Mecca with a drone for the first time since 2017, according to a report by Courthouse News. Mecca is the holiest city in Islam and lies in western Saudi Arabia, where millions of Muslims travel each year to perform the pilgrimage.

The Saudi-led coalition is a military alliance that has been involved in Yemen's long-running conflict, pitted against the Houthis and the forces they back. Drones, or unmanned aircraft, are small pilotless planes that can be flown from a distance, and interception means shooting one down before it reaches its target.