Saudi Arabia Says Debris From Two Houthi Missiles Fell in Mecca Region; Houthis Deny Targeting the Holy City

Since the Houthis' renewed campaign against Saudi Arabia escalated this year, the fighting has moved from border posts and oil sites to the capital and now to the outskirts of Islam's holiest city. The latest development came Wednesday, Nov. 11.

Saudi civil defense said two Houthi ballistic missiles launched toward the Mecca region were intercepted and destroyed by air defenses. Debris fell at Sabuhah village, about 35 kilometres northeast of the Grand Mosque, and at Wadi al-Maghmas, about 21 kilometres east of it. No casualties or damage were reported.

In a statement issued early Thursday, Nov. 12, civil defense called the targeting of civilian objects "a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law" that reflects "the dangerous hostile approach pursued by the Houthi militia."

What the coalition says it shot down

The Saudi-led coalition put its Wednesday tally at five missiles and two drones, according to spokesman Turki al-Maliki. Three cruise missiles were headed for the Riyadh region. Two missiles were aimed at the west. Two drones were brought down over the Mecca region and the south.

Civil defense also issued danger alerts for Taif, Yanbu and Khamis Mushait during the day, then announced the danger had passed, state television reported.

It was the second straight day of interceptions over Riyadh. The coalition said it downed a ballistic missile and a cruise missile on Tuesday. On Thursday it reported one more interception, a drone over the Eastern Province.

The Houthi denial

The Houthis have repeatedly denied Saudi accusations that they target Mecca or Medina. Military spokesman Yahya Saree again said Wednesday that the group had not sent a drone at Mecca and that its operations hit oil facilities and military bases. The group had not commented on the missile debris as of Thursday.

Saree instead claimed an attack on a pumping station in Yanbu. Saudi Arabia has not confirmed it.

Saudi officials see it differently. The coalition says the weapons were launched at the Mecca region. The Houthis say they were not. The geography, with debris landing within a few dozen kilometres of the Grand Mosque, is documented by Saudi civil defense. The intent behind the launches is not, and only one side has spoken to it.

An earlier barrage on Oct. 24 also left interception debris in Wadi al-Maghmas, according to earlier Saudi-area reporting by Siasat. The same valley has now been hit twice in three weeks.

An escalating pattern

The Houthis have intensified attacks on Riyadh in recent days, saying they are answering Saudi strikes in Yemen. A Houthi attack Sunday damaged an Aramco administrative building in the capital's financial district. Last month, a Houthi strike on King Khalid International Airport killed 13 people and wounded more than 300.

The Houthis control most of Yemen's populous areas. A UN-brokered truce in 2022 largely froze the conflict. Fighting resumed this year, and the pace picked up in September when the Houthis advanced toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the chokepoint at the southern end of the Red Sea. Since then they have stepped up strikes on Saudi airports, ports and oil facilities. Saudi Arabia has answered with more airstrikes on Houthi targets.

Regional diplomacy is moving too. Saudi Arabia and Syria signed a defense cooperation agreement on Nov. 4 during Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa's visit to Riyadh. Neither government has disclosed what it contains. The two countries also called for an immediate end to actions threatening navigation in the Red Sea, Bab el-Mandeb and Hormuz.

Why Yanbu matters

Yanbu carries outsized weight because it lets Saudi crude reach buyers without passing through Hormuz, which is blocked. The Saudi Energy Ministry said earlier this week that flows were unaffected after Houthi claims about a pipeline section near Medina. The new Yanbu claim stands unconfirmed.

Oil markets were relatively calm early Thursday. Brent futures were down $1.14, or 1.2%, at $91.62 a barrel in Tokyo trading, with Nissan Securities strategist Hiroyuki Kikukawa tying the dip to hopes for ceasefire progress in other conflicts. He also warned that uncertainty around Hormuz makes a major collapse in prices unlikely.

Two questions are open. One is whether Saudi Arabia will confirm or rebut the Houthi claim about the Yanbu pumping station. The other is whether the Houthis will address the missile debris near Mecca at all, or stick to their position that the holy cities are not targets.