Houthis Claim Attack on Saudi Aramco Facility Amid Rising Conflict

The Yemen-based Houthi movement has claimed responsibility for an attack on a facility owned by Saudi Aramco in the Saudi capital, Riyadh. This announcement comes as fighting intensifies between the Iran-aligned Houthis and the internationally recognised government of Yemen, which is backed by Saudi Arabia.

In a statement released on social media platform X on Saturday, Yahya Saree, the military spokesperson for the Houthis, announced that the group conducted a 'military operation with ballistic missiles and drones' aimed at the Aramco site. He characterised the strikes as 'precise and direct' and asserted that they resulted in significant fires at the facility. Eyewitnesses reported seeing a large plume of smoke rising from the area around the Aramco facility.

In contrast, Turki al-Maliki, who serves as the spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, responded to these claims by labelling them 'misleading'. This official statement was disseminated through Saudi media outlets.

Later on Saturday, the Saudi-led coalition outlined that its forces had executed 97 'precise targeting operations' against Houthi reinforcements. The military actions took place at the Tor al-Baha front and along the Taiz axis, deploying a variety of armed forces including warplanes and drones. Colonel Majed Abdullah al-Nazili, a spokesperson for the Yemeni government forces, reported that these operations targeted 'at least 260 Houthi fighters' and resulted in the destruction or immobilisation of 44 military vehicles.

Prior to this incident, the Houthis claimed to have struck Aramco facilities in Yanbu, located on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast. Saudi military officials indicated at that time that they successfully intercepted six ballistic missiles aimed at both Taif and Yanbu, reporting no damage to their facilities.

Further escalation occurred earlier this week when the Saudi-led coalition stated that the Houthis had attacked a power station in Medina, a city of considerable religious significance.

The hostilities between the two sides have escalated sharply since the collapse of a fragile truce in July 2022. In September, the Houthis captured the port city of Mocha, along with several strategic islands in the Bab al-Mandeb strait, an important passageway for global oil shipments.

The ongoing conflict has resulted in widespread displacement, with hundreds of thousands forced from their homes since the resurgence of fighting. Yemen has experienced civil war conditions since the Houthis took control of the capital, Sanaa, in 2014, pushing the legitimate government to relocate to Aden.