Saudi Arabia said fragments from two Houthi ballistic missiles fell in the Mecca region on Wednesday after its air defenses intercepted and destroyed them. The incident came amid an escalating exchange of attacks between the kingdom and the Iran-aligned movement in Yemen, following the resumption of hostilities earlier this year.
In a statement, Saudi civil defense said the missiles had been launched toward the region and that debris landed in several places. It identified Sabuhah village as one of those locations. The Saudi account described both missiles as having been destroyed in the air before their debris fell to the ground.
Civil defense condemned the incident in a statement issued early Thursday, describing it as hostile targeting of civilian objects. The agency said such targeting violated international humanitarian law and reflected what it characterized as a dangerous approach by the Houthi movement. Those allegations formed part of the Saudi response to the missile launches.
The Houthis had not commented on the latest incident. They have repeatedly rejected earlier Saudi accusations that their attacks target Mecca and Medina, the two holiest cities in Islam. The movement has maintained that its operations inside Saudi Arabia are aimed at military and strategic sites elsewhere in the kingdom.
The confrontation has its roots in Yemen's war. Houthi forces took control of the capital, Sanaa, in 2014. Saudi Arabia entered the conflict militarily the following year, intervening on behalf of Yemen's internationally recognized government against the movement that had seized the capital.
A truce brokered by the United Nations in 2022 largely brought the conflict to a standstill. That pause did not hold, however, and hostilities resumed earlier this year. The renewed fighting has included Houthi missile and drone attacks against Saudi territory, alongside Saudi airstrikes inside Yemen.
Wednesday's reported missile interceptions occurred against that backdrop of renewed cross-border attacks. The Saudi statement placed the falling debris within the Mecca region, while the Houthis' longstanding position has been to deny that they direct attacks at the holy cities.
The latest escalation has also threatened the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden, the strait is a key route for shipping.
