Saudi Arabia Says Houthi Drone Attack on Mecca Crosses ‘Red Line’

Saudi Arabia said its air defenses intercepted a Houthi drone south of the Islamic holy city of Mecca on Tuesday, thwarting an attack that crossed a major “red line” in the conflict.

Saudi military spokesman Col. Turki al-Maliki denounced the drone incursion as a “hostile and terrorist attack” conducted by the “terrorist Houthi militia.”

Al-Maliki accused the Houthis of targeting “the birthplace of revelation, the land of the message, and the destination that draws the hearts of millions of Muslims from around the world.”

“The security of the Two Holy Mosques and the pilgrims is a red line,” he declared. The other mosque he referred to is located in the Saudi city of Medina.

The drone attack was also denounced by Saudi Arabia’s ally Pakistan, and by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), a bloc of 57 Muslim countries.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the “dastardly and heinous attempted drone attack” in the “strongest possible terms” on Wednesday morning.

“The people of Pakistan are saddened and perturbed by this outrageous act. There can be no words strong enough to capture the depth of anguish and sorrow felt by us at this reprehensible and unforgivable act,” he said.

“Pakistan stands unwaveringly, shoulder to shoulder with the brotherly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in the defence of its sovereignty, and territorial integrity, as well as for the security and sanctity of the Haramain Sharifain – a duty that every Pakistani carries close to their heart,” he pledged. “Haramain Sharifain” is another term for the mosques in Mecca and Medina.

The OIC also described the Houthi attack as “heinous,” and said it was intended to “instill fear in innocent civilians, violate the sanctity of holy sites and mosques, and provoke the sentiments of Muslims around the world.”

The General Secretariat of the OIC accused the Houthis of “terrorism that runs counter to Islamic values and to international norms, principles, and law.”

“The violation of the sanctity of holy sites is an unacceptable and intolerable transgression that requires deterring the perpetrators and blocking the path of anyone who dares to infringe upon these sites,” the statement said.

Air defense alerts were sounded in Mecca for the first time in almost a decade on Monday. The previous occurrence was in July 2017, when Saudi air defenses intercepted a Houthi ballistic missile that was headed toward the city. The alert on Monday was an emergency alert of a higher severity, broadcast by an upgraded air defense system.

The only other time Mecca has been threatened in modern history was when armed terrorists took over the Grand Mosque for two weeks in 1979 to make a political statement against the Saudi royal family.

Mecca is the location of the Kaaba, the cubical stone building regarded by Muslims as the holiest site in their religion. When Muslims around the world face Mecca during their daily prayers, they are specifically facing the Kaaba.

Muslims are encouraged to make a pilgrimage known as the hajj to Mecca at least once in their lifetimes, and roughly 1.7 million pilgrims did so this year. Another pilgrimage to Mecca known as the umrah drew 11.7 million visitors to Mecca in September and October last year.

The Saudi government takes its stewardship of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina very seriously and sometimes bristles at criticism that it does not handle the huge influx of visitors during the hajj properly. One of the official titles for the king of Saudi Arabia is “Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.”

The Saudis have also been criticized for limiting access to Mecca for political reasons, as during a time of high tensions with Iran a decade ago. Saudi Arabia, in turn, criticized the Houthi insurgents for Yemen for attempting to disrupt the hajj with missile attacks during a previous round of hostilities, after Saudi Arabia intervened against the Houthis in Yemen’s civil war.

Houthi officials on Wednesday denied launching a drone at Mecca.

“The claims about targeting Mecca are a worn-out lie that has been used before and no longer fools anyone,” said Houthi Politburo member Hezem al-Assad.

“We categorically deny that there is any threat from Yemen directed at the city of Mecca, or any other holy sites,” a Houthi military source said in a statement carried by Houthi media in Yemen.

Turkish and Pakistani officials told the Associated Press on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia has yet to invoke the mutual defense clause of the trilateral agreement signed in August — ironically known as the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, because it was signed in that city.

The agreement includes a clause that would oblige Turkey and Pakistan to defend Saudi Arabia against an attack, but the officials who spoke to the AP said the Saudis have not requested their help. A Turkish official added that the alliance has not been “institutionalized” yet, so it might not be fully “operational,” in the event Riyadh does ask for help.

A senior Turkish official told Middle East Eye on Tuesday that the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia do not prove that the Mecca agreement was a failure, because “the pact’s mutual defense commitments are not yet legally operative, and that the institutions and military arrangements needed to implement them will take time to build.”

According to this official, the Turkish parliament plans to begin ratifying those aspects of the treaty in late October. He noted only the Saudi monarchy has the legal authority to ratify its portion of the trilateral agreement by decree.

“People don’t want to understand but what we founded is not only a security alliance but actually an international organization – and the founding treaty, once revealed, would show to the world how carefully it was crafted,” the Turkish official said.

The Saudis and Houthis exchanged more fire on Wednesday, with the Houthis claiming more drone and missile strikes on the Saudi oil port of Yanbu and the airbase at Khamis Mushayt. The Houthis also claimed to have shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet and captured vehicles from Saudi-allied forces in Yemen that fled before the Houthi advance along the Red Sea coast.