Video: Houthi rebels strike at the heart of Saudi oil production

Yemen’s Houthi rebels say they attacked a Saudi oil facility in the east of the country on Sunday, reports the Washington Post. In a televised statement, a spokesman for the rebels, Brigadier General Yahya Sarea, said ballistic missiles and drones were able to reach the Aramco facility at Ras Tanura.

The major port lies on Saudi Arabia’s Persian Gulf coast and is one of the country’s largest refineries. The attack also affected Saudi military installations in nearby Damman.

Saudi state media confirmed the attack and said that one petroleum tank farm was attacked on Sunday morning. A spokesman said shrapnel also fell on Aramco’s residential area in Dharan. There are no reports of casualties or damage to property.

Coalition forces said both attacks were intercepted and the drones were shot down. Houthis launched several armed drone attacks on the Kingdom earlier in the day and Saudi officials said the targets were civilian infrastructure, and that attacking “civilians and civilian objects in Saudi Arabia is a red line”.

In response, the coalition said it had conducted attacks on Yemen’s rebel-held capital, Sanaa, and videos on social media and Saudi television show large plumes of smoke and massive explosions rocking the city.

The Houthis often attack Saudi oil installations, but previous attacks have been concentrated in the country’s southern region. The most serious attack to date was in September 2019, when the rebels were able to knock-out half the kingdom’s oil output for several days after attacking a refinery with rockets.