Saudi Grand Mufti Sheikh Saleh bin Fawzan Al-Fawzan has urged troops stationed on the front lines to be prepared to sacrifice their lives in defense of the Kingdom, invoking the defense of holy sites amid the ongoing confrontation with Yemen.
The remarks recycle Riyadh’s long-standing claim that Yemen’s Resistance, AnsarAllah, is targeting holy sites in Makkah and Madinah a claim that AnsarAllah has repeatedly and categorically denied. AnsarAllah has consistently stated that it does not and will not target holy sites, and that its operations are strictly military in nature, aimed at military bases and strategic infrastructure used for aggression against Yemen.
Saudi Arabia, which has led a nearly decade-long war and blockade on Yemen resulting in one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, has frequently attempted to portray itself as the victim while continuing its aggression. Observers note that the invocation of holy sites is used as a tool to mobilize religious sentiment and justify the war, despite no evidence of any threat to Makkah and Madinah from Yemen.
Al-Fawzan’s call comes as Saudi Arabia faces growing pressure over its role in Yemen, where its military campaign has devastated civilian infrastructure. Rather than ending its aggression and lifting the siege, Riyadh continues to frame Yemen’s resistance operations against military targets inside Saudi territory as attacks on Islam itself.
AnsarAllah has stressed that its actions are defensive responses to U.S-Saudi led aggression and that Saudi Arabia would not face any retaliatory strikes if it stopped its war on Yemen.
