Houthis vow to target Saudi military sites, claim drone strike on Aramco facility

SANAA, Aug 14: Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group has vowed to continue targeting Saudi military buildups, while claiming it carried out a drone strike on a Saudi Aramco facility in the southern city of Najran.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group would continue targeting Saudi military concentrations “wherever they are,” according to Hezbollah-affiliated Al Mayadeen. The Houthis also claimed attacks on military positions, weapons and boats belonging to Saudi-aligned forces in Yemen’s Mokha area.

Separately, the Houthi-run Saba news agency reported that a drone had targeted the Aramco facility in Najran, claiming the operation “successfully achieved its objective.” The group said the attack was carried out in response to what it described as a Saudi military aircraft violating Yemen’s airspace over Saada province. Saudi authorities and Aramco have not commented on the claim.

The latest claims come amid a sharp escalation in tensions along the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. On August 6, the Saudi-led Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen said 11 civilians, including seven Saudi nationals, were injured in an attack on Najran.

The Houthis have expanded attacks to vessels linked to Saudi Arabia since early July, prompting Riyadh to intensify airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen’s western Hodeidah province. Saudi Arabia has also announced a multinational maritime defense coalition aimed at protecting freedom of navigation through the Bab al-Mandab Strait.