Houthi rebels attack Saudi oil facilities with missiles and drones

Yemen's Houthi rebels, backed by Iran, announced on Saturday they launched a series of missile and drone attacks targeting Saudi Arabia's oil infrastructure. The group's military spokesperson, Yahya Saree, stated that facilities operated by Saudi oil giant Aramco in Jizan and Yanbu were struck. The Houthis also issued a warning of expanded operations should the Saudi government retaliate.

Video statements from the Houthis and subsequent social media footage, verified by AFP, showed plumes of black smoke rising from a refinery in Jizan following the attack. While Saudi Arabia has not directly commented on the specific incidents, its civil defense agency issued alerts to residents in the affected southwestern coastal city of Jizan and the northern city of Yanbu.

This latest exchange of fire comes after the Houthis accused Saudi Arabia, a U.S. ally, of dangerous escalation following Riyadh's airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen the previous day. A Yemeni security source indicated that a naval base in the port city of Hodeida and a military camp on Kamaran Island were among the Saudi targets.

The renewed hostilities between the allies of the United States and Iran signify the opening of another battleground in West Asia. This follows recent actions, including U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran in late February. The conflict in Yemen, which has been ongoing between the internationally recognized government, supported by Saudi Arabia, and the Houthi rebels since 2015, has resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths and a severe humanitarian crisis. However, fighting in the impoverished Arab Peninsula nation had largely subsided since a UN-brokered ceasefire in 2022. This week, the Houthis also announced maritime blockades against Saudi Arabia by attacking its oil tankers in the Red Sea.

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The group targeted facilities operated by Saudi oil giant Saudi Aramco in Jizan and Yanbu and threatened to expand the attack if attacked by the Gulf government.