Coalition: drone hit Taibah station at dawn

The Saudi-led coalition said on Thursday that Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis struck an electricity distribution station in Medina that supplies the Prophet's Mosque. Coalition spokesman Major General Turki al-Maliki said a drone hit the Taibah electricity distribution station at 5:11 am (0211 GMT) on September 29.

He said investigations and evidence, among them an after-action review and the drone wreckage, had established the following for the competent authorities:

• •The coalition said the strike put one transformer out of service while the wider electricity network stayed unaffected.
• •Al-Maliki said the targeted facility supplied power to the Prophet's Mosque.
• •He called the strike on the civilian facility a continuation of attempts to target the Two Holy Mosques.

Medina, where the Prophet Mohammed is buried and the Prophet's Mosque stands, ranks among Islam's holiest cities.

Houthis deny role in rare holy-city attack

The Houthis denied involvement in the drone attack. On Thursday, a senior Houthi official again rejected accusations that the movement had targeted Islamic holy sites, according to Houthi media.

Attacks linked to Islam's holy cities are rare. The Houthis have repeatedly sent drones and missiles at Saudi Arabia since the kingdom entered Yemen's civil war in 2015; they hold Sanaa and much of the country's Red Sea coast.

Government forces strike Houthi targets

Loud explosions were heard in Sanaa, which the Houthis hold, on Thursday evening. The military of Yemen's internationally recognised government said its forces struck Houthi targets in Sanaa, Saada and Taiz.

• •A military spokesman said a "high-value targeting operation" was run in Sanaa and that 11 targets were hit in Saada.
• •He added that 27 air strikes hit what he called an "integrated military system" belonging to the Houthis in Taiz.

Turkey, Qatar, Arab League and Al-Azhar condemn

Turkey strongly condemned the alleged attack and backed Saudi Arabia, with its foreign ministry denouncing the Houthis' attack on civilian infrastructure in Medina. The ministry said the attacks endanger Saudi sovereignty and what it called the sacred values of the Islamic world, and demanded that they stop at once and without conditions. Turkey also restated its strong support for Saudi Arabia and urged moves to stop further escalation.

Qatar condemned the attack as "a grave assault on the sanctity of Islamic holy sites" and a breach of Saudi sovereignty and international law, reaffirming full solidarity with Riyadh and describing the kingdom's security as an integral part of Gulf security.

The League of Arab States called the attack an unacceptable transgression, saying it provokes the sentiments of Muslims worldwide and marks a dangerous escalation. Al-Azhar, the Cairo-based Sunni Islamic learning institute, denounced the incident, saying targeting Medina provokes the sentiments of Muslims worldwide.