A missile attack by Yemen’s Houthi militants struck the headquarters of Saudi oil giant Aramco in Dhahran on Tuesday, triggering a fire inside part of the complex, according to people familiar with the incident.

The fire was later extinguished, but the extent of the damage remained unclear. It was also not immediately known whether the fire resulted from a direct strike or debris from intercepted missiles.

Aramco and Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry did not immediately comment on the incident.

The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said Houthi missiles targeted several Saudi cities, including the capital Riyadh and Dhahran, home to Aramco’s headquarters. The coalition also reported that shrapnel from an intercepted projectile fell in a residential area of Dhahran.

According to a World Oil report, the latest incident comes amid a series of Houthi attacks on Saudi territory that have also targeted airports and key energy facilities. Previous strikes have disrupted operations at a refinery in Jazan, western Saudi Arabia, while an important oil export port on the Red Sea coast has also come under attack.

The escalating hostilities have raised concerns over the security of Saudi Arabia’s energy infrastructure. A major cross-country pipeline used by Aramco to transport oil to global markets was temporarily shut down last month following an attack launched from Iraq.

The latest missile launches came after the Saudi-led coalition warned residents near an oil facility in Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, to leave the area for their safety.

Dhahran is a major centre of Saudi Arabia’s oil industry, located along the kingdom’s Gulf coast. It hosts Aramco’s headquarters, a university specializing in petroleum engineering, and a major air base. Some of the country’s largest oil fields lie in the surrounding Eastern Province and offshore waters.

BOB Post