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Saudi Arabia strikes oil facility near Yemen’s Sanaa after evacuation warning
Yemen’s Houthis warned Saudi Arabia against targeting Sanaa shortly after the Saudi-led coalition announced that it would conduct an operation in the city.
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Saudi Arabia on Tuesday struck an oil facility near Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, hours after the Saudi-led coalition ordered civilians to evacuate the site.
An AFP correspondent in Sanaa reported hearing an explosion, while a breaking news alert on Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV said Saudi forces had targeted the oil company in Al-Sabaha, west of the capital.
The Saudi-led coalition had earlier warned civilians to evacuate the Al-Sabaha station, operated by the Yemen Petroleum Company (YPC), following a series of deadly Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia, particularly around Riyadh airport, AFP reported.
Earlier on Tuesday, Yemen’s Houthis warned Saudi Arabia against targeting Sanaa after the Saudi-led coalition said its forces had intercepted three drones north of Riyadh.
“Interception and destruction of 3 drones north of Riyadh city,” coalition spokesperson Major General Turki al-Maliki wrote on X, according to AFP.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree also issued a warning on X, saying any attack on Sanaa would trigger a “tough and painful response” in Riyadh, AFP reported.
The latest exchange comes amid escalating hostilities between the Saudi-led coalition and the Houthis, who have targeted Saudi airports and oil facilities since last week, as the wider conflict between the US and Iran spills over into the region.
Yemen accuses Saudi Arabia of overnight strikes
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels on Tuesday accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out overnight airstrikes along Yemen’s northern border with the kingdom and on its western coastline. Saudi Arabia did not immediately respond to the allegation.
The claims came hours after air raid sirens sounded and explosions were heard in the Saudi capital.
The Houthi-run al-Masirah television channel reported on Tuesday that two airstrikes had hit the Houthi-held Red Sea island of Kamaran, while a third struck Qanawis district, about 55 kilometres (34 miles) northwest of the port city of Hodeidah, according to AP.
The channel also reported airstrikes in Al Jawf province, which borders Saudi Arabia, and blamed Riyadh for the strikes without providing further details.
The Houthis also claimed to have shot down a Saudi drone over Saada province, a rebel stronghold in northern Yemen bordering Saudi Arabia.
Turkey will stand by Saudi Arabia, says Erdogan
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in a phone call on Tuesday that Turkey would continue to stand by Saudi Arabia amid attacks by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militants, the Turkish presidency said, according to Reuters.
In a statement, the presidency said Erdogan had strongly condemned the Houthi attacks and told the crown prince that he believed “this challenge will be overcome”.
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