Saudi-led coalition says it destroyed five drones heading for Medina region and east

RIYADH: The Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen’s internationally recognised government has claimed that five drones heading for the Medina region and the eastern areas of Saudi Arabia were destroyed in the air.

According to BBC Urdu, coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki said in his first message on X that four drones had been intercepted and destroyed. In a later message, he claimed that a fifth drone, heading for the eastern part of the country, had been shot down. The spokesman did not say where the drones came from or whether they caused any damage.

Since tensions between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthis recently escalated, Riyadh has been accusing the Houthis of drone and ballistic missile attacks. A day earlier, the British government had announced the deployment of Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter jets for Saudi defence.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview with Iraqi channel Al-Ikhbariya on Tuesday that neither Saudi Arabia nor the Houthi movement had so far responded to Iran’s offer to mediate to end the fighting. Commenting on Egypt’s statement of support for Saudi Arabia, he said any outside intervention would complicate the situation further.

Separately, a vote in the Egyptian parliament on possible Egyptian military action against the Houthis has been postponed until 26 October. The Turkish government has submitted to the Speaker of Parliament the bill on the “Mecca Joint Defence Agreement”, concluded with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on 7 August. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Turkey would not send troops to the territory of any other country.