Saudi Arabia reports fresh Houthi attacks, issues warning for Mecca

Saudi Arabia intercepted Houthi ballistic missiles on Thursday after issuing warnings for several regions including Mecca, as the Iran-backed group ramps up attacks on the kingdom.

The attacks were reported as fighting raged in Yemen between the Houthis and Riyadh-backed government forces, killing dozens on both sides, according to a tally from seven sources who spoke to AFP.

The missiles were the latest in a series of escalating Houthi attacks since July, when renewed hostilities shattered a years-long truce and embroiled Yemen in the wider Middle East war.

Since then, the Houthis have imposed a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia, hitting its tankers and territory and seizing swathes of Yemen's Red Sea coast, which is vital for Saudi oil exports.

The Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen's government since 2015 against the Houthis said six ballistic missiles had been intercepted, thwarting attacks on Taif and Yanbu.

"Escalations and violations by the terrorist Houthi militia will be dealt with firmly," said coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki in a series of posts on X.

Earlier, the Saudi Civil Defence had issued a brief series of alerts including one for Mecca, home to Islam's holiest sites, with separate warnings for the Red Sea governorate of Yanbu as well as the Taif, Jeddah and Tabuk regions.

The alerts were lifted a few minutes later. In recent weeks, alerts have often preceded attacks by the Houthis.

Last week, Riyadh accused the group of targeting Mecca for the first time since 2017 with a drone that was downed, an accusation the Houthis denied.

A few days later, the group attacked the Saudi capital Riyadh -- the first in years, marking a new escalation in the conflict.

- Strategic hilltops -

As the Houthi attacks targeted Saudi Arabia on Thursday, battles raged on the ground in Yemen.

At least 150 Houthi fighters and government forces members have been killed in the past 24 hours, sources from both sides told AFP, including in clashes over hilltops overlooking the Bab al-Mandab strait at the mouth of the Red Sea.

At least 98 soldiers and government forces members were killed, according to an AFP tally compiled from five military sources.

Most were killed in Houthi ballistic missile and drone attacks, with dozens of Yemeni troops killed on the Saudi side of the border that they are tasked with guarding.

The Houthis later claimed launching a complex barrage involving ballistic missiles and drones to target command centres and weapons depots in southern Saudi Arabia, with the group saying Yemeni and Sudanese fighters were killed and injured in the attack along with Saudi personnel.

At least 52 Houthi fighters were killed in other clashes, two sources from the group said.

Many on both sides were also killed in clashes in the Kahboub Mountains and in areas between the Lahj and Taiz regions, as the Houthis seek to dominate the highlands overlooking Bab al-Mandab to protect newly seized territory.

In July, a fragile 2022 truce between the Houthis and Yemen's government fell apart after the group allowed an Iranian plane to land in Sanaa in defiance of Riyadh's control over Yemeni airspace, setting off a spate of attacks.

The Houthis later announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and began hitting its tankers and territory.

Their gains cement the hold of Iran and its allies on the two waterways that the wider Gulf, including top crude exporter Saudi Arabia, relies on to ship out its oil and other fuel products.