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Yemen's Houthis say attacked airport, Aramco facility in Saudi Arabia's Najran
The developments come as IRGC warned that Saudi would be “unable to contain” the Houthis as the rebels intensify attacks on the kingdom.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said, on Thursday, that they had targeted an airport and an Aramco facility in Saudi Arabia’s southern Najran region, near the Yemeni border, AFP reported.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group had "successfully carried out two military operations using drones: the first targeted a sensitive Saudi enemy site at Najran Airport, while the second targeted the Aramco facility in Najran"
The developments come as Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned that Saudi Arabia would be “unable to contain” the Houthis as the rebels intensify attacks on the kingdom.
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Yemen, which has been embroiled in more than a decade of civil war, was drawn into the wider Middle East conflict in July after the Houthis ended a 2022 truce with the Saudi-backed government.
A Yemeni minister told AFP this week that the Houthis were planning to seize territory along the Bab al-Mandab Strait, potentially allowing them to further threaten the vital shipping route.
Three Houthi military sources and a spokesperson for Yemeni government forces fighting the rebels near the waterway also said the group was planning to advance south from its current positions.
Hostilities resumed last month after the Houthis welcomed an Iranian plane in the capital Sanaa, triggering a series of tit-for-tat attacks. The rebels later announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and began targeting its ships, airports and oil facilities.
Houthis claimed attack on Aramco facility on Aug 9
Earlier, on August 9, Houthis had claimed responsibility for an attack on a gas facility in Saudi Arabia’s Jubail region, Reuters reported, citing the group’s military spokesperson.
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Saree had then said the group had "succeeded in targeting the Aramco refinery in Jazan with a drone, and the strike was precise", adding that the attack was carried out in response to Saudi incursions into territory in northwestern Yemen.
Saudi Arabia, however, said a fire broke out at the Aramco facility in Jazan and was extinguished by the company’s industrial security firefighting teams with no injuries reported.
Tensions rise in Middle East
The tension in the Middle East seems to be escalating by the day. A new US carrier strike group has arrived in the Middle East, the US military said. The deployment adds to Washington’s naval presence in the region and comes amid heightened security concerns and ongoing conflicts across the West Asia.
