Saudi Aramco headquarters area struck as Saudi Arabia and Houthis exchange attacks
Qwenews.com – Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi movement exchanged new attacks on energy and aviation-related targets Tuesday, deepening a sharp escalation in a conflict that has again placed the kingdom’s infrastructure under pressure.
An administrative building linked to Saudi Aramco in Dhahran, the Eastern Province city where the state oil company is headquartered, was targeted during the latest Houthi operation. Saudi authorities said a small fire broke out at the site. It remained unclear whether the blaze resulted from a direct strike or debris falling after an interception. No injuries were recorded at the Aramco-related building.
The incident came amid renewed missile and drone activity directed at Saudi territory, including the Riyadh area. Saudi-led coalition forces said they destroyed three cruise missiles and two drones aimed at Riyadh and southern parts of the kingdom. Falling wreckage injured at least four people, Saudi authorities said.
Fuel depot attack preceded the exchange
Hours before the strike near Aramco’s headquarters, Saudi Arabia hit a major fuel depot in Yemen that it says had supported Houthi operations against Saudi airports, energy installations and Red Sea shipping routes.
The Houthi-controlled Yemen Oil Company said before the attack that the depot did not contain petroleum-product stocks and that its destruction would not disrupt fuel reserves or supplies. Houthi officials said two civilians were killed and two others were wounded in the strikes. The Saudi-led coalition said civilians had been warned to leave the area in advance.
This operation focused on neutralizing the capabilities the Houthi militia uses to threaten the kingdom, Yemen, the southern Red Sea and maritime corridors.
The statement from coalition spokesperson Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki reflected the wider stakes in the confrontation. Saudi Arabia views the attacks as a threat not only to domestic facilities but also to shipping lanes that pass through the Red Sea, a strategically important route for international trade.
Airport attacks raise concern
The latest exchange followed a week of deadly Houthi missile and drone attacks that forced the closure of Riyadh’s main international airport. King Khalid International Airport has been struck repeatedly in recent days.
Saturday’s attack on the airport killed 13 people and wounded more than 300, making it the deadliest assault on Saudi Arabia in more than a decade. The violence has prompted the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain and Canada to warn their citizens about using the airport.
On Tuesday, the US State Department expanded travel limits for American government personnel in Saudi Arabia. Employees now need special authorization from the chief of mission before using any airport in the kingdom.
The attacks have underscored the vulnerability of civilian aviation and critical infrastructure during a period of intensified fighting. Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in defense systems, yet repeated drone and missile launches have demonstrated the difficulty of protecting a large country from low-cost, mobile threats launched across a nearby border.
Fighting spreads across several fronts
Earlier Tuesday, the Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted one ballistic missile heading toward the Eastern Province and another aimed at Haradh, near the Yemeni border. It also said three Houthi drones were intercepted north of Riyadh.
Inside Yemen, Houthi-run Al Masirah TV said coalition artillery fire in Saada province wounded three Yemenis and two African residents in Baqim district. The network later said artillery fire struck residential villages in Shada, a border district in Saada, killing two civilians and wounding two others. It also described strikes in Sanaa and several additional provinces.
The battlefield claims from both sides could not be independently confirmed. Yemen’s internationally recognized government said its forces had continued making gains in the operation known as “Dawn of Yemen.” It said that over the previous 24 hours, its forces carried out 2,200 strikes on Houthi positions, killing roughly 1,200 fighters and destroying or disabling more than 440 military vehicles and other assets.
Those figures illustrate the scale of the military claims emerging from the conflict, though they remain unverified.
A conflict returning to a more dangerous phase
The confrontation had experienced years of relative calm before reigniting this summer and intensifying further last month. In July, the Houthis said they would target Saudi shipping in the Red Sea and infrastructure within the kingdom, describing the campaign as a response to what they called retaliation for a Saudi blockade on Yemen’s capital.
Since then, attacks have increasingly focused on targets with economic and symbolic value, particularly airports, energy facilities and shipping routes. The Houthis have now warned that Saudi Aramco facilities and King Khalid International Airport could face further attacks if Saudi forces continue their operations.
The strike in Dhahran is especially significant because Aramco is central to Saudi Arabia’s energy industry and global oil markets. Even limited damage near the company’s headquarters can draw international attention, while uncertainty over further attacks may heighten concerns about the security of energy infrastructure across the region.
For civilians in both Saudi Arabia and Yemen, the renewed exchanges bring immediate risks from direct strikes, air defenses and falling debris. The attacks also point to the possibility of a broader regional impact if hostilities continue to threaten Red Sea maritime corridors and major transport hubs.
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