Houthi rebels claim attack on Saudi oil facility with cruise missile

Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Monday claimed they carried out a predawn cruise missile attack on a Saudi oil facility hours after the kingdom finished hosting a virtual Group of 20 (G-20) summit.

Houthi military spokesman Yehia Sarie tweeted that the group fired a new Quds-2 cruise missile at a Saudi Aramco distribution station in Jeddah on the Red Sea coast.

“The attack was very accurate where the ambulances, fire engines rushed to the target location,” Sarie wrote on Twitter.

He added that the strike was in response to the Saudi-led coalition’s “ongoing blockade and aggression” in Yemen, and that foreign companies and residents in Saudi Arabia should “be away from vital facilities that are important” as “operations are continuing.”

He posted a satellite image labeled as Aramco’s North Jeddah Bulk Plant, which can be found on Google Maps.

Saudi state-run media did not immediately acknowledge any attack.

A Saudi-led coalition has been fighting against Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015, when the coalition intervened to restore the Yemeni government ousted by Houthi forces.

The United States has supported the Saudi-led coalition with weapons sales, intelligence and other military aid, leading to increased bipartisan opposition in Congress as coalition airstrikes have killed thousands of civilians.

Saudi Arabia, which hosted a virtual format for this year’s G-20 summit over the weekend, also hosted Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a meeting that included Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and reportedly Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Houthi rebels in recent years have carried out missile and drone strikes on Saudi civilian airports and oil infrastructure, often using Quds-1 missiles.