Saudi Arabia says it shot down Houthi drone south of Mecca

On Tuesday evening, Saudi Arabia intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone near Mecca, the Islamic holy city, according to Turki al-Maliki, the spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. The targeting of Mecca, home to Islam's most sacred shrine, was described by al-Maliki as a "disgraceful act". The 57-nation Organisation of Islamic Cooperation condemned such attacks on Mecca and Medina, the second holiest shrine, as an "unacceptable and intolerable transgression".

However, the Houthis, who are backed by Iran and control much of western Yemen, denied targeting Mecca and accused Saudi Arabia of making "fabrications and lies". They stated that their operations targeted oil facilities and military bases, which are far from the holy sites. The Houthis also claimed they had shot down a Saudi fighter jet over Marib province in retaliation for over 450 Saudi air strikes on their territory in the past week.

The US embassy in Saudi Arabia issued a "reconsider travel" advisory, warning that Houthi attacks had targeted various cities, infrastructure, airports, military bases, diplomatic facilities, and energy facilities. Saudi authorities issued security alerts in several western areas, including Mecca and Jeddah. The war in Yemen has displaced over 90,000 people, according to the International Organization for Migration, and the World Health Organization reported that at least 500 people were killed since August, including 297 in the previous week.