Houthi chief dismisses Saudi accusation over alleged Mecca drone attack
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Sanaa: Houthi leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi has denied Saudi Arabia’s claim that the Yemeni group tried to strike Mecca, calling the accusation a deliberate falsehood intended to justify further military action against Yemen.
In a televised speech aired by the Houthi-run al-Masirah channel on Thursday, al-Houthi said the allegation was being used to generate public support for what he called Saudi-led “military measures” against the country, Xinhua news agency reported.
He accused Riyadh of failing to pursue a political solution during a period of relative calm and alleged that it had instead intensified restrictions on Houthi-controlled areas.
According to al-Houthi, the continued restrictions on airport operations and imports were among the main issues preventing progress towards a settlement.
He urged his supporters throughout Yemen to stage large demonstrations on Friday to condemn what he described as Saudi “fabrications and slander”.
The denial followed an announcement by Saudi Arabia that its air defence forces had intercepted a Houthi drone south of Mecca on Tuesday evening. The Saudi-led coalition said the drone was destroyed before it could enter the restricted airspace surrounding the holy city.
Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Malki said the protection of Islam’s two holiest sites and the safety of pilgrims constituted a “red line”. He warned that Saudi Arabia would take all necessary steps in response to the alleged attack.
Al-Malki also claimed that the incident was the second attempt by the Houthis to target Mecca. The coalition had earlier accused the group of launching a ballistic missile towards the city on July 27, 2017.
The latest accusations and counterclaims came as fighting intensified between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia. The Houthis have reportedly strengthened their position along Yemen’s Red Sea coast and near the Bab al-Mandab Strait since September 3, while carrying out more missile and drone attacks against Saudi military and oil installations.
The group has also accused Saudi warplanes of increasing airstrikes on targets across Yemen.
The Yemeni conflict began in late 2014, when the Houthis captured Sanaa and large parts of the country’s north. In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition entered the war in support of Yemen’s internationally recognised government.
(Inputs from IANS)