By Tamar Stein, Israel365news, September 18, 2026

The drone was intercepted at 6:50 p.m. local time before it could enter Mecca’s restricted airspace, according to Turki al-Malki, spokesman for the Saudi-led military coalition. Its wreckage fell south of the city. Al-Malki called it the second Houthi attempt to target Islam’s holiest city, after a ballistic missile launch in July 2017, and said the security of the Two Holy Mosques was a “red line.”