MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The missile was intercepted 43 miles away from the city. Its fall did not cause harm. The alliance command claimed missiles were being smuggled into the war-torn country through the western Al Hudaydah port and under the guise of relief aid.
"The air defense forces of the Alliance in Support of Legitimacy in Yemen were able… to intercept a ballistic missile launched by the Houthi militias towards Makkah [Mecca]," the statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) read.
Over the past two years, the Saudi Air Force has been involved with its Gulf Cooperation Council allies in air strikes against Houthis in Yemen. The campaign has inflicted an estimated 10,000 civilian deaths, according to UN humanitarian officials.