Yemen's Houthis denied launching any attack towards Saudi Arabia on Friday, after the Saudi-led coalition said it had intercepted and destroyed a drone launched by the group over the Mecca region, Reuters reported.

Source: Reuters

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree dismissed the coalition's account as false in a post on X, saying the group had not carried out any operation towards Saudi territory. He said its operations target Saudi oil facilities and military bases.

The coalition's official spokesperson, Major General Turki Al-Malki, said Saudi air defences intercepted and destroyed a drone targeting the Mecca region on Friday morning, in a statement reported by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA). Al-Malki also said a cruise missile launched by the Houthis had been intercepted and destroyed in the western region in the early hours.

Source: Saudi Press Agency via Virgin Radio Dubai

The coalition gave no further details on whether the Friday interception caused any damage or injuries. The Iran-aligned Houthis have launched a series of cross-border attacks against Saudi Arabia in recent weeks, targeting military installations, airports and energy infrastructure, and the group has repeatedly denied targeting Mecca and Medina, Islam's two holiest cities, rejecting previous coalition accusations that it had launched drones towards the cities.

As background, Saudi Civil Defense said a citizen sustained minor injuries on Thursday when debris from two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthis fell in Riyadh after the missiles were intercepted and destroyed, damaging a house and a vehicle. That Thursday incident was reported separately and is not part of Friday's Mecca-region interception.

The Mecca region is in western Saudi Arabia, and the kingdom hosts a large number of Indian and Punjabi workers. No damage or injuries from the Friday drone interception were reported in the coalition's statement.