Houthi Rebels Strike Aramco Refinery on Saudi Red Sea Coast

The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have claimed responsibility for striking an oil facility on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast. According to Yahya Saree, the group's military spokesman, they successfully targeted the Aramco refinery in Jizan with a drone strike, which was precise and launched in response to Saudi drone incursions into northwest Yemen.

The attack comes as tensions between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia escalate. The 2022 truce in Yemen's civil war appears to have collapsed last month, with the Houthis announcing a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and hitting Saudi tankers in the Red Sea.

Aramco is Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil company, and the Jizan refinery was previously targeted by the Houthis in July. The Saudi energy ministry reported that civil response teams brought under control a fire at the facility without giving the cause of the blaze.