Saudi Arabia says missile debris fell in Makkah and Madinah regions; Houthis dismiss targeting claim as a 'big lie'
Saudi Arabia's civil defence agency says missile debris has fallen in the Makkah and Madinah regions. The debris fell in various places after missiles fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels were intercepted, the agency said. But the Iran-backed group has dismissed the allegation that it targeted Islam's two holy cities as completely baseless and a 'big lie'.
On Saturday, in a post on the social media platform X, Saudi Arabia's General Directorate of Civil Defense said debris from two ballistic missiles fired by Houthi militias towards Makkah and Madinah had fallen in various places.
The agency said the debris fell outside Makkah at Wadi Mughamas, in Jeddah's Al-Nuzha area, at Wadi Jalil in Taif, and at an uninhabited place in Rabigh.
Earlier on Saturday, the Saudi civil defence agency had issued warnings of possible danger in four provinces in the west of the country, including Makkah. Residents were instructed in the warning to go to the nearest safe place.
The Houthis, for their part, directly rejected the allegation of targeting the two holy cities. The group's military spokesman Yahya Sari said in a statement that what the Saudi enemy was propagating in their forces' name about targeting the holy areas of Makkah and Madinah was a big lie.
A few hours earlier, the Houthis had claimed they attacked various installations in Saudi Arabia on Friday and Saturday. Military spokesman Yahya Sari said they had attacked King Khalid International Airport in the capital Riyadh on two occasions, as well as airports in the Dammam and Najran regions. Their targets also included the southern Khamis Mushait airbase, two oil installations and an east-west oil pipeline.
The Saudi-backed Yemeni government, meanwhile, said the Houthis had also fired three ballistic missiles at coast guard installations in the southern port city of Aden.
In recent weeks Saudi Arabia has come under attack from Yemen's Houthi rebels several times. Through these exchanges of attacks and counter-claims, the picture emerging is of a conflict widening on both sides.
Analysts say this intense military conflict has completely broken the United Nations-brokered ceasefire of 2022. Under that truce, direct cross-border attacks between the Saudi-led coalition and the Houthis had stopped for a long time.
Saudi Arabia has long supported Yemen's internationally recognised government, while the Houthi rebels hold the capital Sanaa under their control. That divide lies at the heart of the long war.
The claims and counter-claims surrounding the two holy cities have added a sensitive dimension to the conflict. The Saudi authorities have named the places where debris fell, while the Houthis' own list of attacks mentions airports, an airbase and oil installations, not holy areas — and that gap between the two accounts is now at the centre of the dispute.
With attacks increasing since the truce collapsed, fears are growing that the conflict will spread further. Attention will now turn to what both sides say next, the pattern of attacks on the ground, and whether any diplomatic initiative emerges to restore a ceasefire.
