After Mecca, Medina Targeted: Drone Strike Hits Station Feeding Prophet's Mosque
Military hostilities between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Houthi movement have escalated sharply following reports of a targeted drone strike aimed directly at critical utility infrastructure in the holy city of Medina. According to official statements released by the Saudi-led military coalition, a Houthi-directed combat drone hit the Taiba Power Distribution Station located inside Medina. The targeted facility serves as a lifeline installation, directly supplying primary electrical power to Al-Masjid an-Nabawi (the Prophet's Mosque). An official military spokesman revealed on social media platform X that while the strike completely gutted an electrical transformer, emergency engineering teams迅速 stabilized local grids, preventing widespread electrical disruptions across the sacred sanctuary.
Coalitions Condemn Calculated Assaults on Islam's Holiest Sanctuaries
The Saudi defense establishment has issued an uncompromising condemnation of the Medina attack, with coalition spokesman Brigadier General Turki Al-Malki stating that the incident forms part of a deliberate, coordinated strategy to threaten the Two Holy Mosques. The assault follows a parallel escalation reported last month, when suspected Iranian-backed Houthi drones targeted perimeter defenses around Mecca, triggering intense international condemnation across diplomatic capitals, including formal protests from New Delhi. Despite Riyadh reaching out to key allies for fortified defensive assistance, prominent partners including the United States and Pakistan have reportedly maintained operational restraint, further complicating regional defense coordination.
Ballistic Missile Salvos Intercepted Over Khamis Mushait and Jazan
Beyond the drone assault on Medina, Saudi Royal Air Defense batteries intercepted a wave of heavy aerial attacks over the southern borders. Military radar units tracked and neutralized two ballistic missiles launched by Houthi forces toward Khamis Mushait and Jazan near the Red Sea littoral on Thursday. Official bulletins issued by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) confirmed that interceptor shrapnel and falling rocket debris rained over urban perimeters in Khamis Mushait, causing significant damage to several civilian buildings and parked motor vehicles, though direct casualties were averted due to timely air-raid sirens.
Red Sea Choke Points Under Siege: Bab al-Mandeb Chokeholds Threaten Global Energy
The expanding aerial offensive underscores the Houthis' aggressive consolidation of power across Yemen's western coastline and key island fortresses controlling the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. By establishing operational chokeholds across this vital maritime gate, the rebel administration is exerting intense economic pressure on commercial shipping lanes. With maritime transit through the neighboring Strait of Hormuz already crippled by overarching US-Iran regional hostilities, renewed attacks around the Red Sea bottleneck risk crippling global oil supplies, driving global tanker freight rates to historic highs and threatening global energy security.
