Houthis claim drone attack on Saudi Aramco refinery as tensions with Riyadh rise
Claimed Aramco attack follows Houthi naval blockade and Saudi airstrikes as Yemen front threatens to reignite
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis said they had launched two drones at an Aramco refinery in Saudi Arabia’s southern Jizan region, the latest sign of renewed tensions between the jihadist group and Riyadh.
Saudi Arabia did not immediately comment on the claim.
The Houthis said the attack was retaliation for what they described as Saudi violations of Yemeni airspace over the Saada and Hajjah governorates, according to the Houthi-affiliated Saba news agency. A Houthi military source quoted by the agency threatened further retaliation for any perceived infringement of Yemeni sovereignty.
The claimed strike followed another Houthi attack announced Sunday against an oil facility on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast, which the group also portrayed as a response to Saudi drone activity over northwestern Yemen.
Tensions have risen since the Houthis declared a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea on July 20, accusing Riyadh of maintaining a siege on Yemen. Saudi Arabia denies the allegation. A Saudi-led coalition subsequently carried out airstrikes on Houthi sites in the port city of Hodeidah that it said were being used to threaten commercial shipping.
The escalation comes as Iran maintains its own blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a major pressure point in efforts to end the war launched by the US and Israel against the Islamic Republic earlier this year.