Huthis claim attacks on Ríad airport and oil

Ohuthis rebels today claimed a series of attacks on various civilian, energy and military targets in Saudi Arabia, including the international airport King Khalid in Riyadh, and installations of Saudi state oil Aramco.

In a statement, Huthis military spokesman Yahya Saree stated that the Yemeni Shiite pro-Iran movement carried out four operations involving the firing of ballistic and cruise missiles, in addition to the use of drones, against targets in Saudi territory.

The first operation targeted the capital airport, Aramco's oil storage tanks and Riyadh's financial center.

Saree stated that the attacks “were direct and precise” and “caused significant damage”.

Hours earlier, the Saudi Ministry of Energy reported, in a statement, that “one of Aramco’s administrative buildings in Riyadh was the target of an attack (...), resulting in the collapse of debris over the building”.

The Saudi ministry pointed out, however, that the damage was “light” and that there were neither wounded nor dead. The ministry manifested itself after the circulation of videos on social networks showing several towers — allegedly belonging to Aramco in Riyadh — from which dense smoke emanated from the upper floors.

At the same time, the Saudi Arabian-led military coalition reported intercepting at least five ballistic missiles launched against the Arab kingdom.

Saree stated that the Huthis also attacked Aramco facilities in the city of Abqaiq, east of Riyadh, as well as “concentrations of Saudi troops” in the Yemeni province of Al-Jawf (north) and in the provinces of Marib and Lahj, in Yemen.

The Yemeni spokesman stated that these attacks were a response to the bombings of the Riyadh-led coalition – which has been taking place in Yemen since 2015 in support of the internationally recognized Yemeni government – which is accused of causing the death of 33 civilians east of the Yemeni capital Sana on Saturday.

The Huthis attacks on civilian installations, including those linked to the energy sector and airports — including Riyadh — intensified in parallel with the military offensive by Yemeni government forces, supported by Saudi Arabia, to recover territories under the control of the rebels.

Regional bodies and various Arab countries today condemned the wave of attacks by Yemen's Huthis rebels against Saudi Arabia and demanded urgent intervention by the UN Security Council on the grounds that world energy supply is at risk.

The Arab Parliament warned in a statement that these “repeated and atrocious terrorist attempts” against civil and oil infrastructure threaten regional stability and “the security of world energy supply”.

He therefore requested that the UN Security Council take its role to contain the aggressions and to hold the perpetrators accountable.

Along the same lines, the Bahrain Foreign Ministry called on the UN's main body to take decisive action against the aggressors and their sponsors, stressing Riyadh's right to self-defense.

The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Jassem al-Budaiwi, classified the actions as “cowardly terrorist acts” and warned that the lack of international firmness towards Huthis rebels only fosters destabilisation in the Middle East.

Qatar, Egypt and Jordan also joined the convictions and their respective Foreign Ministries classified the launch of ballistic missiles against urban areas and economic facilities as a “ flagrant violation of international law” and Saudi sovereignty.