ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) on Wednesday condemned the drone attacks targeting Saudi Arabia and attempts to target the holy city of Mecca, expressing its “full solidarity” with Riyadh.

The Saudi-led military coalition in Yemen said early Wednesday that Saudi forces intercepted and destroyed a “hostile drone,” launched by Houthi rebels, before it entered the airspace of Mecca, censuring the targeting of the holiest city in Islam as “a disgraceful act.”

The KRG’s Department of Foreign Relations (DFR) in a statement condemned the recent attacks on Saudi Arabia, asserting: “These actions pose a grave threat to the Kingdom's security and the safety of civilians and pilgrims visiting the Holy House of God.”

“Targeting Makkah [Mecca] al-Mukarramah, given its immense religious and spiritual significance to Muslims worldwide, represents a highly dangerous development. It threatens the sanctity of holy sites and the safety of the pilgrims, necessitating clear and firm condemnation,” the DFR added.

The DFR expressed the KRG’s support for Riyadh in protecting its sovereignty and the safety of its population, while emphasizing that “disputes should not serve as a pretext for targeting civilians, civilian facilities, or religious holy sites.”

Yemen’s Houthis have denied targeting Mecca, describing the Saudi allegations as “fabrications and lies,” and stressed that the group poses no threat to the holy sites and that their operations solely target oil facilities and military bases.

Having enjoyed a tentative peace for years following a UN-backed truce in Yemen's decade-long civil war, tensions between Riyadh and the Iran-backed Houthis flared following an airstrike on Sanaa International Airport that prevented an Iranian plane from landing in mid-July.

The two sides have relentlessly exchanged fire since, reaching unprecedented escalations in recent weeks.

Earlier in September, the DFR condemned a recent spate of Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia that Riyadh claimed wounded over 70 people, including women and children, reaffirming the need for “peace and dialogue” in addressing regional crises.

On Saturday, the Houthis seized Yemen’s entire Red Sea coastline after they had expelled Saudi-backed forces from several western districts in a major offensive, including areas around the strategically important Bab al-Mandab Strait.