Saudi Aramco‘s oil storage facility in Jeddah was attacked by the Houthi rebels on Friday, causing a fire in two of the storage tanks.
The Saudi-led coalition said on Friday that Aramco’s petroleum products distribution station in Jeddah was hit, leading to a fire but any casualty was averted.
A huge plume of black smoke could be seen rising over the Red Sea city where the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is taking place this weekend, said an eyewitness.
The Iran-backed Houthis have intensified attacks on the oil facilities in the recent weeks and ahead of a temporary truce for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The Saudi-led coalition has time and again said that it is exercising self-restraint in the face of the attacks; however, it launched a military operation in Yemen early on Saturday saying that it aimed to safeguard the global energy sources and make sure that the supply chains are intact.
A coalition statement on state media said that the fire had been brought under control. However, flames could be seen in live feed aired by Saudi-owned Ekhbariya television channel.
The Saudi energy ministry said that the kingdom strongly condemns the sabotaging attacks and restated that it will not be responsible for any disruptions in global oil supply as a result of such attacks.
The ministry blamed Iran for supporting the Houthis with ballistic missiles and advanced drones, emphasizing that the attacks “would lead to impacting the Kingdom’s production capacity and its ability to fulfil its obligations to global markets”.
The coalition said that the Saturday airstrikes it undertook, targeted threat sources in the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa and the city of Hodeidah.
The attacks came as Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was being hosted by Jeddah. The dense black smoke could easily be seen from the race circuit.
Yahya Sarea, the Houthi military spokesperson said that the group fired missiles on Friday at Aramco facilities in Jeddah, as well as drones at the refineries of Ras Tanura and Rabigh. He further added that the group had also targeted “vital facilities” in the capital city of Riyadh.
Saudi state media had earlier said that the coalition had foiled multiple drone and rocket attacks by the Houthis. Saudi air defences also destroyed a ballistic missile that was launched towards Jizan, which caused a small fire at one of the electricity distribution plants.
“At a time when the parties should be focused on de-escalation and bringing needed life-saving relief to the Yemeni people ahead of the holy month of Ramadan, the Houthis continue their destructive behaviour and reckless terrorist attacks striking civilian infrastructure,” Blinken said while condemning the attacks on its ally Saudi Arabia.
The conflict that is widely seen as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran has killed thousands of people and has pushed Yemen to the verge of famine. Meanwhile, the Houthis put it as fighting a corrupt system and foreign aggression.
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