The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen announced on Tuesday that it had intercepted and destroyed a drone in Saudi Arabia’s Mecca region, marking the latest such incident near Islam’s holiest city.
Coalition spokesperson Major General Turki al-Maliki announced the interception in a post on the social media platform X.
The incident follows a similar interception on October 30, when the coalition said it had destroyed a drone launched by the Iran-backed Houthi militia in the Mecca region.
On September 15, Saudi air defenses also intercepted and destroyed a drone south of Mecca before it could enter the city’s restricted airspace, according to the coalition.
Al-Maliki described that incident as an attempt to target the holy city, warning that the security of Islam’s two holiest sites, in Mecca and Medina, as well as the safety of pilgrims visiting them, was a “red line.”
Saudi authorities have previously reported intercepting ballistic missiles near Mecca. One such missile was destroyed over the Taif area in July 2017, approximately 69 kilometers (43 miles) from the city.
The latest interception comes amid renewed fighting in Yemen and a series of missile and drone attacks targeting Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia leads a military coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government against the Houthis, who seized the capital, Sanaa, in 2014.
