Yemen's Houthi militia launched a ballistic missile toward the holy city of Mecca on Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition intervening in Yemen's civil war on behalf of the government said in a statement.

Coalition forces destroyed the missile 65 km (40 miles) from the holy city before it could do any damage, and retaliated against the launch site inside Yemen, said the statement, carried on the state news agency SPA. 

The Houthis confirmed the launch of a Burkan-1 ballistic missile into Saudi Arabia in a statement on their official news agency, but said it had been aimed at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, the kingdom's busiest airport.

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) denounced the missile attack.

The coalition has been fighting Houthi rebels and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who control much of the north of Yemen including the capital Sanaa, since March 2015 to try to restore the internationally recognised president Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi, now in exile.

Source: Timesofoman