Los hutíes de Yemen se atribuyen ataques con drones y misiles en Arabia Saudí

Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed on Saturday that they had carried out attacks on Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh, as well as facilities belonging to the world's largest oil producer, Aramco, along the country's western coast. Earlier in the day, a thick column of black smoke rose near Riyadh International Airport, accompanied by explosions in the city.

Yahya Sari, the Houthi military spokesman, stated in a statement that his fighters had carried out "two successful military operations utilizing a large number of ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones." The first operation targeted strategic points in Riyadh, while the second was directed at Aramco facilities in Yanbu.

Both incidents resulted in significant fires. Yanbu is where oil tankers are loaded for Riyadh's exports, after Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz, through which Saudi Arabia previously shipped part of its crude, before the U.S.-Israel war against the Islamic Republic on February 28. On September 11, another ally of Iran, the Iraqi Shia militias, forced Riyadh to halt the flow of crude through the East-West pipeline, the conduit that transported Saudi oil to the Red Sea.

This attack comes a week after the Houthis gained control over 130 kilometers of Yemeni territory, including the port of Mukha and Mayun Island in the Red Sea, allowing them to control the Bab el Mandeb strait, the sole southern gate to those waters and the Suez Canal, through which 30% of global container traffic and around 8% of oil pass.

The Yemeni insurgency claims to have launched these bombings in response to accusations made against them by Riyadh on Wednesday, which asserted that they had intercepted a Houthi drone targeting Mecca, a claim the militants dismissed as "a great lie." The attacks also occurred amid the military coalition led by Riyadh and supporting the internationally recognized Yemeni government, with whom the Shia militants are at war.

The Houthi spokesman declared that the "false propaganda spread by the enemy Saudi media, claiming we attacked civilians, lacks foundation; such assertions are simply the result of failed interceptions by the Saudi defense systems." He reiterated that the Houthis would continue to respond "until aggression ceases and the blockade on Yemen is lifted."