Saudi-led coalition says it destroyed Houthi drone bound for Mecca

Targeting Mecca carries a different weight than the cross-border strikes that have become routine in this conflict: it touches the kingdom's core religious legitimacy, not just its border security. The claim of interception, sourced to the coalition spokesman, leaves the Houthis' own account and any independent verification as the immediate gap. Whether this marks a shift in targeting logic or a single incident is the open question, and it is the one that matters for how Riyadh calibrates its next moves.