Yemen · updated 2h ago · 3 min read
Houthis Hit Taiba Grid Station In Madinah, Saudi-Led Coalition Says
Saudi-led coalition: Houthis attacked Taiba power distribution station in Medina, damaging one transformer. Attack did not disrupt overall electricity network; wider grid remained operational.
Whether Houthis deny the allegation and why.
3 of 4 outlets skipped it: al Jazeera adds simultaneous Saudi interception of drones and missiles.
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Same story, two versions
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Türkiye Today
“The source said the accusation was an attempt by Saudi Arabia to deflect”Read the original ↗
Al Jazeera
“A Houthi military source, quoted by the Houthi-run Saba news agency, denied the accusation, calling it a ‘lie’”Read the original ↗
One outlet adds motive detail; the other reports denial more narrowly.
Drone hits Medina station
Saudi Arabia said a drone attack targeted the Taiba Grid Station in the holy city of Madinah early Tuesday, temporarily disabling one electricity transformer while leaving the wider power network operational. Coalition forces spokesman Major General Turki Al-Malki said the attack took place at 5:11am on September 29 and that investigations and analysis of the drone wreckage confirmed Houthi involvement in planning and carrying out the attack. Al-Malki said the Taiba Grid Station is part of the civilian electricity infrastructure that supplies power to the Prophet’s (Peace be Upon Him) Mosque, and he described the targeting of civilian infrastructure as part of the Houthis’ continued attempts to target holy sites in Makkah and Madinah.
The Saudi-led alliance fighting Yemen’s Houthis accused the Iran-aligned group of attacking an electricity facility in Medina this week, and it said the attack put one transformer out of service without affecting the electricity network. A Houthi military source, quoted by the Houthi-run Saba news agency, denied the accusation and called it a “lie.”
Clashes in Taiz
Saudi-backed government forces said they were repelling a large-scale Houthi attack in the Taiz governorate and inflicting heavy losses on its fighters. Yemen’s army said in a statement on X that the Houthis had opened heavy fire on Wednesday evening in Jabal Habashi and Maqbanah districts, west of Taiz, and on the al-Aqrud front in al-Masrakh district to the southeast. The Saudi-backed forces reported killing at least 30 Houthi fighters on the al-Aqrud front alone, in addition to wounding dozens, and they said six air strikes inflicted heavy losses southeast of Taiz and on the Humayr front in the Maqbanah directorate to the west.
The management unit for Yemen’s internally displaced people camps said 197,906 individuals had been officially registered as of Wednesday, comprising 29,519 families, with more than 97,000 people being housed in Taiz province. Saudi Arabia announced it approved 224 million Saudi riyals ($59.7m) in budget funding for Yemen’s internationally recognised government to enhance the regularity of government financial flows and strengthen the purchasing power of the Yemeni citizen.
Regional condemnations and stakes
The Gulf Cooperation Council’s Secretary-General Jassim al-Budaiwi condemned the attack on an electrical facility serving the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina as a “blatant provocation to Muslims worldwide and a dangerous transgression of the sanctity of Islamic holy sites.” Qatar condemned the attack as a “serious assault on the sanctity of Islamic holy sites, a clear provocation to Muslims, and a flagrant disregard for civilian lives and a serious violation of Saudi sovereignty and international law.” The Saudi-led coalition said its investigation and examination of drone wreckage established Houthi involvement in planning and carrying out the Tuesday attack, and it said the attack caused one of the transformers to go out of service without affecting the power grid.
Saudi Arabia’s coalition said it would continue taking deterrent measures to ensure the protection of the Two Holy Mosques, and it described the Medina strike as part of repeated Houthi attempts to target the two holy mosques and “provoke” Muslims worldwide. The dispute unfolded alongside Yemen’s internationally recognised government forces claiming they killed dozens of Houthi fighters in intense clashes across several fronts in Taiz province, as internally displaced people numbers rose and most resettlement remained in Taiz.