Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia spark fires at oil facilities, leave 73 injured

Saudi Arabia came under a fresh wave of Houthi attacks early Tuesday, with strikes targeting civilian and economic facilities across the kingdom’s southern region. The attacks triggered fires at several oil facilities and utilities and left 73 people injured, including women and children, according to Saudi authorities. The latest attacks mark a fresh escalation in tensions between the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen and Saudi Arabia, which has backed Yemen’s internationally recognised government in the country’s long-running civil war.

Saudi-led coalition spokesperson Maj Gen Turki al-Malki said the attacks struck what he described as “civilian and economic facilities” in Abha, Jazan, Najran and Khamis Mushait. According to al-Malki, 73 people were wounded in the attacks. He said the casualties included women and children but did not provide further details about the nature or severity of their injuries.

The strikes also sparked fires at multiple oil facilities and utilities in the southern part of Saudi Arabia. Authorities have not provided a detailed assessment of the damage caused to the facilities. Al-Malki described the attacks as a “serious escalation” and a “flagrant violation of the kingdom’s sovereignty, and a direct threat to the security and safety of its citizens and residents”. He also warned that the Saudi-led coalition would respond, saying it “will take all necessary operational measures to deter the terrorist Houthi militia with utmost resolve”.

Houthis signal more attacks

The Houthi rebels have not officially commented on the strikes themselves. However, the group indicated that it was preparing to issue a statement regarding what it described as “a large-scale military operation” deep inside Saudi Arabia.

Nasruddin Amer, deputy head of the Houthi media office that oversees the rebel-run Saba news agency, also appeared to celebrate the attacks in a social media post. “The Saudi enemy has to understand that the time for committing crimes and massacres against the Yemeni people without response, deterrence, or paying a price has ended,” he said.

Attacks follow deadly strike in northern Yemen

The latest Houthi attacks came only hours after the rebels accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out an airstrike on a prison in Yemen’s northern Jawf province. The Houthis said the strike hit a prison in the city of Hazem, killing at least seven people, including a child, and injuring seven others. The allegation was made by the rebels, and the available account did not provide an independent confirmation of the casualties.

Four-year Yemen truce collapses

The latest escalation follows weeks of intensifying clashes between Houthi fighters and Saudi-backed government forces in Yemen. The fighting has effectively shattered a four-year truce that had brought relative calm to several parts of the country. Heavy fighting has been reported on multiple fronts, including along Yemen’s western coast. Government forces have claimed territorial advances in the provinces of Hodeida, Taiz and Baydah. The Houthis have also continued attacks targeting Saudi oil infrastructure and tankers operating in the Red Sea, keeping pressure on a conflict that has repeatedly threatened regional security and vital energy and shipping interests.

How did Yemen’s civil war begin?

Yemen’s civil war erupted in 2014 after Houthi forces seized the capital, Sanaa, and took control of large parts of northern Yemen. The move forced the internationally recognised government into exile.

In 2015, a Saudi-led coalition, with the United Arab Emirates among its members, intervened militarily in an attempt to restore the government and push back the Houthi advance. The conflict subsequently developed into one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, with repeated fighting, displacement, food insecurity and attacks affecting civilians.

Saudi-UAE tensions add another dimension

The conflict has also been complicated by tensions between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, despite both countries having previously been key members of the coalition supporting Yemen’s government. Those tensions intensified earlier this year as their partnership over the Yemen war deteriorated, eventually resulting in the UAE withdrawing from Yemen.

(With inputs from AP)

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