From Mecca to Mokha: Houthis flex as Saudis flail

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world. Diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode. The Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen’s Houthis accused the rebels on Wednesday of targeting Islam’s holy city Mecca, sparking outrage across the Muslim world. The rebels immediately denied the accusation but did announce later in the day that they had shot down a Saudi fighter jet. At the same time, the Houthis have captured more strategic islands in the southern Red Sea, strengthening their control of the major maritime shipping route Bab el-Mandeb, and putting more of an economic squeeze on the Saudis. We learn how the military chiefs of Israel, the US, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and Egypt held a meeting in Germany last week about the war with Iran and regional tensions, according to the Axios news site. And we hear about how the recent Mecca Accords between Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey are not bearing military fruit. As the conflict deepens across the region, Berman weighs in on Saudi Arabia's requests for help from its allies and neighbors, and why, specifically, the United States appears to hope to stay out of it -- for now. Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates. For further reading: ‘Red line’: Houthis accused of targeting Mecca for first time in current flare-up IDF chief met army heads of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, other Arab states to discuss Iran – report What the closure of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline could mean for oil flows Houthis seize more key islands in Red Sea, launch attacks into Saudi Arabia Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. Yitzhak Ledee filmed and edited this episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.