Riyadh (The Thursday Times) — Saudi Arabia's air defences shot down a Houthi rebel drone south of Mecca before it could enter the holy city's restricted airspace.
According to Major General Turki al-Maliki, spokesman for the Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen, the drone was successfully intercepted and destroyed south of Mecca on Tuesday evening.
According to Saudi officials, the drone was targeted at about 6.50pm on Tuesday, 15 September, and was unable to enter Mecca's restricted airspace.
Describing the security of Mecca and the Islamic holy sites as a "red line" for Saudi Arabia, Turki al-Maliki made clear that any threat to the holy sites would be taken extremely seriously.
The Saudi-led military coalition says this was the Houthis' second attempt to target Mecca, and in this connection it also cited a ballistic missile attack in July 2017.
The Houthi rebels, for their part, have denied targeting Mecca or the Islamic holy sites.
The incident comes at a time when Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia are once again intensifying, and the rising tension in the region is raising concerns over regional security as well as the global economy and the transport of energy supplies.
Mecca is home to the Grand Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) and the Kaaba, and millions of Muslims from around the world travel there every year to perform Hajj and Umrah. For this reason, the security of the holy city matters far beyond Saudi Arabia's borders and is of exceptional importance to the Muslim world.
