Riyadh, October 2,2026: Saudi authorities on Friday denied reports of a suicide bomber at the Grand Mosque in Makkah, saying a man had been arrested for harassing passersby and causing fear and panic.
“Security authorities in the holy capital arrested a person for harassing passersby and spreading fear and panic among them, and he was dealt with immediately,” Saudi authorities said in a statement posted on X.
The authorities said there was “no truth” to claims circulating about the incident. No further details about the arrested man were provided.
Earlier reports circulating on social media had alleged that a suspected suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest approached the Kaaba before being apprehended by security personnel.
The denial came amid heightened tensions involving Yemen’s Houthis and Saudi Arabia.
On Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis said the group had attacked a power distribution station in Madinah that supplies electricity to the Prophet’s Mosque.
According to the coalition, the attack put one transformer out of service but did not disrupt the wider power network. A Houthi military source, cited by the Houthi-run Saba News Agency, denied responsibility.
The Houthis later reported Saudi air strikes on Sanaa and other parts of Yemen, while Saudi authorities did not immediately confirm the strikes.
A spokesperson for Yemen’s armed forces aligned with the internationally recognised government said coalition forces had targeted what he described as “high-value targets” in Sanaa.
The latest escalation is described as the most serious fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis since a UN-brokered truce largely halted cross-border attacks in 2022.
Hostilities intensified this year after the Houthis declared a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia in July and began attacks on Saudi territory and shipping, while also making territorial gains along Yemen’s Red Sea coast.
Saudi Arabia has responded with air strikes in Yemen and supported government forces fighting the Houthis.
The Saudi-led coalition said an investigation and examination of drone wreckage had established Houthi involvement in planning and carrying out Tuesday’s attack on the Madinah power station.
A Houthi military source rejected the claim as a “lie”, according to Saba News Agency, and accused Saudi Arabia of using it to deflect from what the source described as its failure to substantiate an earlier allegation that the Houthis had targeted Makkah.
Saudi Arabia said two weeks ago that it had intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone south of Makkah before it entered the city’s restricted airspace. The coalition described it as the second Houthi attempt to target Makkah since 2017, while the Houthis denied targeting Makkah or any other Islamic holy site.
The coalition described the Madinah attack as part of repeated Houthi attempts to target the Two Holy Mosques and “provoke” Muslims worldwide. It said it would continue measures to protect the holy sites and pilgrims.
The coalition also said it had intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched towards the southern Saudi city of Khamis Mushait. It did not immediately provide details about damage or casualties.
Local officials said early Friday that the Houthis had also targeted the headquarters of the Saudi-led coalition forces command in Aden with several ballistic missiles and drones. There was no immediate response from either side.
