Saudi says intercepted Houthi drone over Madinah and Riyadh

The Saudi-led coalition fighting against Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militants said on Friday it had intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone over the Madinah region, home to Islam's second holiest city.

Saudi Arabia is fighting in Yemen in support of the country's internationally recognised government.

Meanwhile, The Saudi-led coalition said on Friday it had intercepted and destroyed a drone near Riyadh, as well as a missile fired towards Saudi Arabia's southern region.

In two posts on X, coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki said forces had destroyed the drone in Riyadh province as well as "a ballistic missile launched by the terrorist Houthi militia toward the southern region".

Earlier on Friday, the coalition said it had intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone in the Mecca region, with the group denying it targeted Islam's holiest city.

"A drone launched by the terrorist Houthi militia has been intercepted and destroyed in the Mecca region," Malki wrote in a post on X.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree called the Saudi statement "a massive and egregious fabrication".