Yemen’s Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for an attack on an Aramco facility in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, using ballistic missiles and drones. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree stated in a message posted on X on Saturday that the operation targeted the Aramco site and resulted in fires breaking out. However, Saudi authorities and Aramco have not confirmed the attack or commented on the cause of the fire. A large plume of smoke and fire was reported near the facility on the same day.
On Sunday, the Saudi-led coalition, which supports Yemen’s internationally recognized government, reported conducting 97 operations targeting Houthi reinforcements on the Tor al-Baha front and the Taiz axis. Colonel Majed Abdullah al-Nazili, spokesman for the government forces, stated that these operations targeted at least 260 Houthi fighters and resulted in the destruction or disabling of 44 military vehicles.
Previously, the Houthis claimed to have attacked Aramco facilities in Yanbu, a Red Sea port, and Saudi Arabia reported intercepting six ballistic missiles aimed at Taif and Yanbu without any damage to Aramco sites. Earlier this week, the coalition reported a Houthi attack on a power station in Medina. The conflict has escalated since a truce collapsed in July 2022, with significant territorial changes, including the Houthi seizure of the port city of Mocha and strategic islands in the Bab al-Mandeb strait. The ongoing fighting has displaced hundreds of thousands of people since its resurgence, with Yemen experiencing conflict since the Houthis took control of Sanaa in 2014, leading to the Yemeni government’s retreat to Aden.