Mecca Put On Air Raid Alert For 1st Time, Saudi Warns Houthis Of 'Red Line' - ndtv.com

**Mecca on Air‑Raid Alert for the First Time as Saudi Arabia Draws a Red Line for Houthi Attacks**

Saudi Arabia’s civil defence declared an air‑raid alert over Mecca on Tuesday, the first such warning in the holy city’s modern history. The alert was triggered after the kingdom’s air force intercepted a swarm of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles launched from Houthi‑controlled Yemen, some of which were reportedly aimed at the Grand Mosque complex. The Saudi Ministry of Interior said the alert was lifted after a few hours, but the incident has raised unprecedented anxiety among pilgrims and residents, prompting the government to suspend several domestic flights and tighten security at the city’s main entry points.

In response, Riyadh issued a stark “red‑line” warning to the Houthi movement, stating that any further attempts to strike Mecca or other civilian targets would compel the kingdom to expand its military campaign into Houthi‑held territories. The warning coincided with a broader series of security alerts released after a week of cross‑border strikes that also hit Saudi oil facilities and critical infrastructure in the eastern province. The alerts urged heightened vigilance at airports, ports, and oil‑export terminals, and called on citizens to report suspicious activity. Meanwhile, a coalition of Muslim organisations, including the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and several Saudi‑based charities, publicly condemned the attacks, describing them as an assault on the sanctity of Islam’s holiest sites.

The escalation has reverberated beyond the Gulf. New Delhi expressed “deep concern” over the heightened risk to maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el‑Mandeb, where Houthi‑linked drones and missiles have already threatened shipping lanes vital to global oil supplies. In a bid to counter what it perceives as Iranian proxy aggression, Saudi Arabia has announced the formation of a “Mecca Alliance” comprising Gulf and regional partners, pledging coordinated defence measures and diplomatic pressure on Tehran. Oil markets reacted sharply, with crude prices climbing more than $2 per barrel on expectations of further supply disruptions, underscoring the broader economic stakes of the conflict.