Saudi air defenses knock down two Houthi ballistic missiles fired toward the Mecca region; debris falls on a village

Saudi Arabia says its air defenses intercepted two ballistic missiles fired by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis toward the Mecca region on Wednesday, with debris coming down in several places, including the village of Sabuhah, the Jerusalem Post reports, citing Reuters.

Saudi Arabia's civil defense called it "hostile targeting of civilian objects" and "a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law" that "reflects the dangerous hostile approach pursued by the Houthi militia." No casualties were reported in the statement.

The Houthis have repeatedly denied Saudi accusations that they aim at Mecca and Medina, Islam's two holiest cities, and say they target military and strategic sites. They had not commented on Wednesday's launch.

The 2022 UN-brokered truce between Riyadh and the Houthis has collapsed this year. The Houthis have been firing missiles and drones into Saudi territory and Saudi Arabia has answered with airstrikes in Yemen, putting shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the gateway between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, at risk again.