Pakistan has strongly condemned an attempted drone attack reported near the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressing solidarity with Riyadh and praising the Saudi armed forces for intercepting the threat.
Saudi Arabia said its air defence forces intercepted and destroyed a drone south of Mecca before it could enter the restricted airspace around the holy city. Saudi-led coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki described the security of Mecca and the other Islamic holy sites as a “red line.”
The incident has been linked by Saudi authorities to Yemen’s Houthi movement amid a wider escalation in attacks involving Saudi territory. However, the Houthis have denied that they targeted Mecca or posed a threat to Islamic holy sites.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in a statement on September 16, condemned what he described as an attempted drone attack against Makkah Al-Mukarramah. He praised the vigilance and response of the Royal Saudi Armed Forces and reaffirmed Pakistan’s support for Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and the security of the Haramain Sharifain.
Sharif also called on all parties to exercise maximum restraint and avoid further escalation. He said dialogue and diplomacy remain the sustainable route toward resolving the wider regional crisis.
The incident comes amid a renewed escalation involving Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, following a period in which Houthi attacks on Saudi territory had significantly reduced after the 2022 UN-brokered truce. Recent attacks have again raised security concerns across the Kingdom and around important regional infrastructure and maritime routes.
Pakistan has also separately condemned recent Houthi attacks on Saudi civilian and economic targets and reaffirmed its support for the Kingdom’s security. Islamabad has called for de-escalation and a political process to address the conflict in Yemen.
The reported incident near Mecca has therefore added another sensitive dimension to the escalating regional security situation, with Saudi Arabia emphasizing the protection of the holy sites while Pakistan has called for restraint and diplomatic efforts to prevent further escalation.