Houthis downed Saudi F-15 fighter jet over Marib, Yemen, terror group spox. claims

Yemen's Houthis claimed to have downed an F-15 fighter jet belonging to the Royal Saudi Air Force over Yemen's Marib Governorate, the terror group's military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed on Wednesday.

"The fighter jet was downed using a locally manufactured surface-to-air missile (SAM)," Saree claimed.

Saree did not specify when the alleged incident occured, but opened his statement claiming that RSAF jets had conducted "over 450 airstrikes" so far this week.

The spokesperson also claimed that the Iran-backed group was able to repel two formations of RSAF F-15s and Typhoon fighter jets searching for the alleged wreckage using the same locally manufactured SAMs.

Saree also denied that the terror group targeted Mecca in a drone strike.

Houthis deny posing threat to Mecca, Medina

"The fabrications and lies...cannot deceive anyone," he said, adding that "there is no threat whatsoever from Yemen to the holy sites [Mecca and Medina]."

"Our operations target their oil facilities and military bases, and are far removed from the holy places," he claimed.

Saree's statements on Mecca refer to an incident where the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia's air defenses intercepted and destroyed a drone launched by the Houthis on Tuesday, before it entered prohibited airspace over the holy city of Mecca.

Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Malki said in a statement that it was the second Houthi attempt to target Mecca, Islam's holiest city and the focal point of the annual hajj pilgrimage, following what the coalition said was a ballistic missile launch in July 2017.