Houthis claim Saudi fighter jet shot down, reject allegation of attack near Mecca

Yemen’s Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed Wednesday that the group had shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet over the Marib region of Yemen.

Saree said Houthi forces used a locally produced surface-to-air missile to bring down the aircraft. He also claimed that Houthi forces later confronted Saudi F-15 and Typhoon fighter jets searching for the wreckage and forced them to withdraw.

The claim has not been independently verified, and there was no immediate confirmation from Saudi authorities that an F-15 had been lost.

Saree said Saudi aircraft had carried out more than 450 airstrikes across several Yemeni regions during the week, including Marib, Taiz, Lahij, Al-Jawf, Hajjah, Saada and Al-Bayda.

Saudi Arabia’s air defenses said Tuesday they intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone south of Mecca before it entered the holy city’s restricted airspace. The Saudi-led coalition described the incident as an attempted attack on Mecca.

The Houthis denied targeting the city, with the group rejecting the allegation that the drone was headed toward the Islamic holy site.

The developments came amid an escalation in fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed forces in Yemen.