CAIRO -- Offices belonging to senior executives with Saudi oil giant Aramco were hit in an overnight Houthi strike on the company’s headquarters, two regional officials said Wednesday, in the latest demonstration of the Iran-backed rebels’ ability to attack high-profile targets even after issuing warnings that they would do so.
The officials said the top three floors in a building used by top executives were damaged. One official said the office of the Aramco chief executive was among those hit. There were no casualties. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter with the media.
The sight of smoke rising from some of Saudi Arabia’s most sensitive facilities in recent days has rattled the region and global markets while increasing questions for U.S. President Donald Trump, who has said he is evaluating whether the U.S. should join Saudi strikes against the Houthis in the latest front in the Iran war.
The Houthis earlier said they targeted the city of Dhahran, which hosts the headquarters, with a ballistic missile as part of their latest attacks. The Saudi energy ministry reported a “limited fire” at the Aramco administrative building Tuesday night. Aramco didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
On Wednesday, Saudi civil defence said debris from an interception in the capital, Riyadh, injured a foreigner from an Arab country. The state-run SPA news agency published images showing a vehicle with a large cylindrical object lodged in the front and a building damaged.
The Saudi-led military coalition fighting the Houthis said it intercepted cruise and ballistic missiles and drones targeting Riyadh, a ballistic missile targeting Dhahran, and a cruise missile targeting Al-Kharj, home to Prince Sultan Air Base and the state-owned Military Industries Corporation.
Rebels call the strikes retaliation for ones at home
The Houthis called the attacks retaliation for “treacherous Saudi aggression” against the rebel-held Yemeni capital of Sanaa and other areas, as the kingdom backs the forces of neighbouring Yemen’s internationally recognized government in a major military offensive launched a week and a half ago. The rebel-run Health Ministry reported two dead in attacks in Yemen on Tuesday and blamed the Saudis.
The Houthis have repeatedly targeted Saudi airports, military facilities and oil infrastructure. Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport has been targeted multiple times in the past week with strikes that have killed at least 18 people and hurt over 300 more, greatly affecting aviation across the kingdom.
The Houthis, hardened by years of civil war, have emerged as Iran’s most effective armed proxy of the moment, but experts say they also have their own agenda. Either way, they are applying increasing pressure on a key U.S. ally.
Houthi official describes diplomatic outreach for a ceasefire
A senior Houthi official told The Associated Press that regional and international powers have reached out in an effort to stop the attacks on Saudi Arabia as part of a ceasefire deal.
Mohamed al-Bukhaiti, a member of the Houthis’ political bureau, said Oman has tried to get both sides back to the negotiating table, and Russia and China also tried via Iran.
“We’re welcoming any mediation that leads to an end of the war and the blockade between Sanaa and Riyadh,” he said. “We’re ready for a comprehensive end of the war and the blockade from both sides, not just a temporary ceasefire.”
The rebels continued to warn of attacks on both airports and oil facilities. Over 3,000 flights scheduled to depart from airports across Saudi Arabia have been cancelled or listed as not operating in the past week, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.
Experts say Saudi Arabia can’t intercept everything
The escalation has highlighted Saudi Arabia’s struggle to intercept Houthi missiles and drones. The kingdom has pressed allies like the United States for more military support. Regional officials say Saudi Arabia, the world’s top purchaser of U.S. weapons, is running low on interceptors.
The Saudis are trying to intercept daily attacks across a territory about three times the size of Texas. Experts have said trying to intercept all of the missiles and drones is impossible. The Houthis have a large arsenal capable of striking targets well over 1,600 kilometres away. Some warheads change direction during flight.
The fighting between the Saudis and Houthis erupted this year when the rebels blamed the Saudis for a strike on the airport in Sanaa. That revived anger over a Saudi blockade of the Houthis, who in turn declared a blockade against the kingdom.
The Saudi-led coalition also is striking oil targets. Earlier Wednesday, the Houthi-run Health Ministry said two people were killed in an airstrike Tuesday in the Ras Isa port area in Hodeida province. The strike hit a facility of the state oil company, the ministry said. The Saudi-led coalition also attacked an oil facility in Sanaa.
The targeting of fuel storage facilities in Houthi-controlled areas marks a new phase, said Ahmed Nagi, senior Yemen analyst at the International Crisis Group, a think tank. He added that in a war of attrition, the rebels could risk losing much of their military capacity.
“The Houthis are betting on pressure, while the Saudis are betting on time. The Houthis are trying to strike critical infrastructure in Saudi Arabia to raise the cost of continued military intervention,” Nagi added.
The fighting has revived Yemen’s civil war after four years of relative calm.
“There’s a huge fear,” said one Sanaa resident, Umm Shadi, after the Saudi-led strikes there on Tuesday, adding that people are largely staying home.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said all front lines there have seen an “unprecedented surge in weapon-wounded cases,” especially in Marib, Taiz and along the Red Sea. And the World Food Program said it can no longer reach over 600,000 people in the besieged city of Taiz who depend on aid.
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By Samy Magdy And Cara Anna
Anna reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Sarah El Deeb and Bassem Mroue in Beirut, Ahmed al-Haj in Aden and Fatma Khaled in Cairo contributed.
