Saudi Arabia says it shot down Houthi drone south of Mecca

Saudi Arabia intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone south of the Islamic holy city of Mecca on Tuesday evening, according to the spokesman of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. Turki al-Maliki said the targeting of Mecca, which is the home of Islam's most sacred shrine and the focal point of the Hajj pilgrimage, was a "disgraceful act". The 57-nation Organisation of Islamic Cooperation said attacks on Mecca and Medina province, where Islam's second holiest shrine is located, constituted an "unacceptable and intolerable transgression". But the Houthis, an Iran-backed armed group that controls much of western Yemen, denied targeting Mecca and accused Saudi Arabia of "fabrications and lies". "There is no threat whatsoever from Yemen to the holy sites.