Fire breaks out at Jeddah oil depot after the attack claimed by Houthis
A Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi rebels launched retaliatory airstrikes in Yemen in response to multiple attacks by Houthis. At least eight people were killed and three others were reportedly injured in airstrikes in Yemen.
In recent attack, Saudi Aramco oil storage facility in Jeddah was hit by a barrage of drones. A huge plume of smoke was seen above an oil facility in the Saudi city of Jeddah on Friday following an attack claimed by Yemen’s Houthi group. Officials said there have been no casualties so far in the attack.
The Saudi-led coalition has launched retaliatory airstrikes “against sources of threat in Sanaa and Hodeida” following attacks by Yemeni Houthi rebels in the kingdom, Saudi news agency SPA said.The coalition said it is exercising self-restraint in the face of the attacks, but launched a military operation in Yemen saying it aimed to protect global energy sources and ensure supply chains.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi. “We strongly condemn the latest Houthi terrorist attacks on Saudi Arabia, including today’s that struck Aramco’s civilian infrastructure,” he said.
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan also condemned the Houthi attacks launched against Saudi Arabia’s civil infrastructure. “Unprovoked Houthi attacks against Saudi Aramco’s oil storage facilities in Jeddah as well as attacks against civil facilities in Jizan, Najran, and Dhahran are acts of terrorism aimed to prolong the suffering of the Yemeni people,” he said in an statement.
“Today’s attacks, just like the attacks against water treatment plants and energy infrastructure on March 19 and 20, were clearly enabled by Iran in violation of UN Security Council resolutions prohibiting the import of weapons into Yemen” he added. He noted that the Houthis have continually rejected calls for ceasefires and de-escalation. “It is time to bring this war to a close and relief to the Yemeni people but that can only happen if the Houthis agree to cooperate with the United Nations and its envoy working on a step-by-step process to de-escalate the conflict.”
