Yemen’s Houthi group has denied accusations of a Saudi attack targeting Mecca after Saudi Arabia’s claim to intercept a drone south of the holy city of Mecca. The Houthis said there were no attacks from Yemen targeting Mecca or any other holy site.
Middle East-based media reported on Wednesday (September 16th), citing a report by the Houthi-run Saba news agency. Mohammed al-Farah, a member of the Houthi’s political office, said the claim of attack targeting Mecca from Yemen was “false and baseless.”
Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday evening that the country’s air defense system had destroyed a drone in the south of Mecca. Turkish al-Maliki, a spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, said the drone was intercepted before it entered Mecca-controlled airspace. Security alerts were also issued in some areas, including Mecca, Jeddah and Tayef.
The Houthi official, al-Farah, accused Saudi Arabia of making such a claim against Yemen to build public opinion in the Muslim world and divert people’s attention from its own crisis. Mecca and other holy sites should not be used for political purposes.
He called for an end to the conflict, the lifting of the blockade and allowing Yemen to move freely. He said the conflict could put Saudi Arabia as well as the country’s important facilities and oil infrastructure at risk. However, no independent information about the origins or targets of the drone has been released yet.