Houthis claim drone attack on Saudi Aramco facility in Najran

Yemen’s Houthis claimed Friday that they carried out a drone strike targeting a Saudi Aramco facility in the southern Saudi city of Najran.

The group’s Saba news agency, citing an unnamed military source, said Houthi forces “successfully targeted Aramco Najran with a drone.”

The source claimed the operation had “successfully achieved its objective” but did not provide further details on the alleged strike or any resulting damage.

According to the source, the attack was launched in response to what it described as a Saudi military aircraft violating Yemen’s sovereignty by entering the northeastern airspace of Saada province.

There was no immediate comment from Saudi authorities or Saudi Aramco on the Houthi claim.

The claim came more than a week after another attack targeting Najran. On Aug. 6, the Saudi-led Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen said 11 civilians, including seven Saudi nationals, were injured in an attack on the city.

Tensions in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden have intensified since early July after the Houthis expanded their attacks to include vessels linked to Saudi Arabia. In response, Riyadh has stepped up airstrikes on Houthi positions in Yemen’s western Hodeidah province, saying the sites were being used to threaten maritime navigation.

Saudi Arabia recently announced the formation of a multinational maritime defense coalition to safeguard freedom of navigation in the Bab al-Mandab Strait. The coalition includes the United States, Yemen, Kuwait, Oman, Jordan, Sudan, Morocco, the Maldives, Bangladesh and New Zealand.

Saudi Arabia backs Yemen’s internationally recognized government through the Coalition to Restore Legitimacy, while regional and Western countries accuse Iran of supporting the Houthis, an allegation Tehran denies.