Houthi attacks on southern Saudi Arabia wounded 73 people and set fires at oil facilities and utilities on Tuesday, Saudi authorities said.
The strikes hit civilian and economic facilities in Abha, Jazan, Najran and Khamis Mushait, according to Maj Gen Turki al-Malki, a spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen.
Saudi Arabia’s Energy Ministry said operations at affected oil facilities and utilities were temporarily suspended while firefighters tackled the fires. The ministry did not immediately give a timetable for the facilities to return to normal operation.
Jazan is home to major energy infrastructure, including a refinery with capacity of about 400,000 barrels a day. The extent of damage to the facilities was not immediately clear.
The Houthis claimed responsibility. The group’s military spokesperson, Yahya Saree, said missiles and drones were fired at oil and economic facilities as well as an air base. Those operational claims could not be independently verified.
The attacks follow renewed fighting that has ended a truce which had largely reduced hostilities between the Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition since 2022.
The conflict began in 2014 when the Houthis seized Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, and much of the north. A Saudi-led coalition intervened the following year in support of Yemen’s internationally recognised government.
The latest strikes come as pressure on regional shipping and oil supply routes remains elevated. Bab el-Mandeb, off the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and is an important route for global trade.
Saudi authorities had not announced any deaths from Tuesday’s attacks by the time of publication.
