Houthis claim missile and drone attacks on Riyadh airport, Aramco oil sites and Saudi troops

Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Saturday claimed they had launched ballistic missile, cruise missile and drone attacks on Riyadh’s international airport, Aramco facilities in Riyadh and Khurais, and a Saudi National Guard camp in Najran.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree announced the operations in a statement posted on X, saying the group had carried out six attacks against Saudi infrastructure and military positions in Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Saudi authorities did not immediately confirm the attacks, and there was no independent verification of damage, casualties or disruption to flights or oil operations.

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Houthis claim six operations

According to the Houthi statement, the targets included King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, oil installations belonging to Saudi Aramco in Riyadh and Khurais, and a Saudi National Guard camp in the southern border region of Najran.

Saree also claimed attacks on Saudi troops and military facilities across the border in Yemen, where the Houthis are fighting forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition.

Saudi authorities did not immediately comment on the claims. There was no independently verified information about any damage to the airport, the oil installations or the military camp.

Coalition reports interception

The latest claims came amid renewed exchanges between the Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition.

On November 4, the Houthis said they had targeted Riyadh airport, but Saudi officials did not confirm the claim. The following day, the coalition said its air defences had destroyed a missile heading towards Medina, while Saudi civil defence issued warnings in parts of the kingdom.

On Saturday, the Saudi-led coalition also reported intercepting a Houthi missile directed towards Riyadh province. The announcement did not independently verify the Houthi account of strikes on the airport, Aramco sites or Najran camp.

Airstrikes near Sanaa

The Houthi statement came hours after reports of deadly airstrikes near Yemen’s capital, Sanaa.

Anees al-Asbahi, a spokesman for the Houthi-run Health Ministry, told a news agency that strikes on homes in al-Shariya village killed at least 27 people and wounded 36, most of them women and children. He said the toll could rise.

Al-Asbahi blamed Saudi Arabia for the attacks, but the Saudi government did not immediately comment. The Associated Press said it could not independently verify the allegations.

Saree said the Houthi operations were in response to the village strikes and an attack on a market in southwestern Yemen on Friday.

Houthi officials said at least 30 people had been killed in the market attack. Responsibility for the incident was disputed and had not been independently verified.

Saudi-Houthi conflict

The Houthis seized Sanaa in 2014 and control large parts of northern and western Yemen. Saudi Arabia intervened the following year at the head of a coalition supporting Yemen’s internationally recognised government.

A truce was reached in 2022 and had reduced much of the fighting, but hostilities have resumed, with the Houthis announcing a sea-and-air blockade on Saudi Arabia and conducting drone and missile attacks against Saudi sites.

The renewed fighting has also reached the Red Sea coast, where the Houthis have taken territory near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

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