Saudi Arabia's Aramco Refinery Hit Again: Houthis Claim Third Drone Attack

Yemen’s Houthi rebels, for the third, on Thursday claimed responsibility for a drone attack on an Aramco refinery in southern Saudi Arabia, according to the group’s affiliated news agency Saba.

Saba, citing a military source, reported that Houthi forces targeted the refinery in the Jizan region with two drones and said the attack achieved a “precise hit”.

The claim comes amid renewed tensions between the Iran-backed Houthis and Saudi Arabia, as the wider Middle East war continues to put pressure on regional oil and shipping infrastructure.

Houthis Cite ‘Violation’ Of Yemeni Airspace

According to Saba, the military source said the attack was carried out in response to what the Houthis described as a Saudi “violation of Yemeni airspace and the country’s sovereignty” in the Saada and Hajjah

governorates.

The source warned that the Houthis would respond to further actions against Yemen.

The group said it would “respond decisively to any violation of the country’s sovereignty or any act of aggression targeting the nation”, Saba reported.

Yemen Truce Appears To Have Collapsed

The latest attack comes after a years-long truce in Yemen’s civil war between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government.

That truce appeared to collapse last month as fighting between regional allies of the United States and Iran intensified.

In July, the Houthis announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and attacked Saudi tankers in the Red Sea.

The development has added to concerns over shipping and energy infrastructure in the region.

Earlier Attack On Saudi Oil Facility

Earlier on Sunday,  the Iran-backed Houthis said they had struck an oil facility on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast.

The group said the attack was carried out in response to incursions by drones from Saudi Arabia into northwest Yemen.

The latest claim of an attack on an Aramco refinery in Jizan follows those earlier tensions between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Oil, Shipping Threat Grows

The Houthi threat to shipping and Saudi oil facilities is unfolding alongside Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

The waterway has become the central flashpoint between Tehran and Washington as efforts continue to end the Middle East war.

The conflict was launched by the United States and Israel in February.

The developments involving the Houthis, Saudi Arabia and the Strait of Hormuz have placed shipping and oil facilities across the region under growing pressure, with the Houthi group linking its latest actions to what it describes as violations of Yemeni sovereignty.