Yemen’s Houthi rebels have claimed they launched a missile and drone attack on oil company Aramco’s base in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh. The Houthis said the attack was in response to Saudi Arabia’s attacks on Yemen’s capital Sanaa and other areas. A fire broke out near Aramco’s base in Riyadh and plumes of smoke rose. Firefighters were seen putting out a fire at an oil refinery south of Riyadh. However, Saudi officials have not confirmed the cause of the fire. Aramco also did not immediately make a statement.

Iran-backed Houthi rebels themselves have stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia’s energy sites in recent days. On September 24, the Houthis attacked the Aramco base in Yanbu with missiles and drones. Saudi Arabia then said it had intercepted six ballistic missiles fired around Taif and Yanbu. However, there was no news of damage to Aramco’s facilities.

Attack on East-West Oil Pipeline

Saudi Arabia’s East-West oil pipeline was hit by a drone attack on September 13. Due to this, the oil supply to Yanbu was disrupted. On July 20, the Houthis announced a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia. He called it a response to Saudi Arabia’s naval and air blockade of areas under its control in Yemen.

Preparing for a major offensive against the Houthis

Meanwhile, regional and Western officials say Saudi Arabia is preparing to launch a major military operation against the Houthis. For this, options such as attacking the coastal areas of the Red Sea and acting simultaneously on several fronts are being considered. The campaign may begin next week. Saudi Arabia-backed forces will attack on the ground and Saudi fighter planes will attack from the sky.

Saudi launched 94 attacks on Yemen in 24 hours

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sari claimed on Saturday that in the past 24 hours, Saudi Arabia had carried out 94 air and missile strikes in Sanaa, Saada, Taiz, Hajja, Amran and Ib provinces. According to Sari, civilians were killed and injured in these attacks. He said Saudi Arabia’s F-15 and Typhoon fighter planes took off from Khamis Mushait and Taif airbases. The missiles were fired from Najran and Jizan. According to Sari, the number of Saudi strikes has risen to 1,350 since the escalation of tensions.

The pro-Houthi channel al-Masirah reported that Saudi planes also fired missiles at telecommunications networks in Saqain district of Saada and Amran. According to the Al-Masdar online website, 8 explosions were heard during the airstrikes in Sanaa. The number of casualties and damage caused in these attacks has not been reported.

According to the report, the Houthis captured the entire Red Sea coast of Yemen last month. Attacks on oil bases are feared to increase amid Saudi Arabia’s efforts to strengthen its grip on the Bab-al-Mandeb Strait and the Red Sea seaway.