Several explosion-like sounds were heard in Riyadh on Saturday, while major disruptions were reported at King Khalid International Airport. According to flight-tracking website Flightradar24, several flights were delayed and some were cancelled.
An AFP journalist reported seeing firefighters attempting to extinguish a fire in a burned fuel tank belonging to Saudi Aramco. Black smoke was also seen rising from the fuel storage area near the airport.
Saudi Civil Defense had sent mobile-phone alerts overnight warning of a possible threat in Riyadh and other parts of the country. Later on Saturday morning, it issued a message saying the threat had passed.
Residents in parts of Riyadh told AFP, on condition of anonymity, that they heard repeated explosion-like sounds after receiving the alert. A 27-year-old man living in northern Riyadh said, “I heard the alarm and then my windows started shaking. It was really frightening. I did not expect it.”
Saudi-led coalition spokesperson Major General Turki al-Maliki said in an official statement that air defence systems had also thwarted what he described as “enemy attempts to target civilians” in the cities of Bisha, Taif, Farasan and Yanbu.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya al-Saree said in a statement posted online that “a large number of ballistic and cruise missiles and drones” had been used to attack “sensitive sites” in Riyadh and facilities belonging to Saudi Aramco in Yanbu, a government-owned oil and gas company on the Red Sea coast.
Al-Saree said the attacks were carried out “in response to the criminal attempts by the Saudi enemy to target the Yemeni capital Sanaa.” Sanaa is currently controlled by the Houthi rebels.
Earlier, al-Saree had accused Saudi Arabia of carrying out 300 airstrikes in Yemen over the previous week.
The Houthi rebels are fighting a civil war against Yemen’s internationally recognised government, which is supported by Saudi Arabia. In recent months, the Houthis have carried out several attacks against targets inside Saudi Arabia.
Earlier this week, the Houthis also claimed that they had shot down a Saudi fighter jet flying over Yemen.
According to an unconfirmed AFP report citing military sources from both sides involved in Yemen’s civil war, 48 people were killed in fighting between Houthi rebels and Saudi-backed government forces on Saturday. The Houthis said 31 of their fighters were killed, while government sources said 17 soldiers on their side died.
On Friday, the United Nations’ International Organization for Migration said recent fighting had displaced more than 104,796 people.
The latest escalation has also drawn a response from Turkey. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Saturday that Saudi Arabia may have some military needs in response to the Houthi attacks and that Turkey would consider those needs within the framework of the “Mecca Agreement” reached with Pakistan.
Speaking to Turkish broadcaster NTV, Fidan said, “We see that there are serious attacks on Saudi Arabia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. We have an alliance agreement and we are in complete solidarity on this issue. They may have some military needs, especially regarding certain technical matters. We would have no problem meeting them.”
Fidan also said Saudi Arabia should not be drawn into the ongoing war between the United States and Iran and that Saudi Arabia does not want to become involved in the conflict.
He added, “This crisis was tolerated to a certain extent, but its economic repercussions have now become beyond tolerable.”
The Houthi escalation has also affected strategic locations along Yemen’s Red Sea coast. The rebels have recently taken control of the strategically important port city of Mokha and Perim Island.
Perim Island lies at the entrance to an important maritime route used by Gulf countries to export oil to Asia and Europe.
The Houthis said their maritime blockade was imposed in response to Saudi Arabia’s blockade of Houthi-controlled ports and airports in northwestern Yemen.
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed because of the ongoing war between the United States and Israel and Iran, Saudi ships have relied on this part of the Red Sea for oil exports.
On Friday, investment banking company JPMorgan said it was finding it difficult to estimate how the war would affect oil prices.
In a note sent to investors, the bank said, “We really do not know what the ultimate outcome will be, so we are unable to assess it.”
The developments around Riyadh, Saudi energy infrastructure, Yemen’s Red Sea coastline and the wider disruption to maritime routes have added another layer to an already escalating conflict, while Turkey’s offer to address possible Saudi military needs signals growing regional concern over the consequences of the Houthi attacks.
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