Houthi’s fire missiles at Saudi energy facility

Saudi Arabia said Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis fired missiles at various energy and water desalination facilities on Saturday night and Sunday morning, Reuters reported. 

In a statement on Sunday, Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry said the drones and missile strikes hit a petroleum products distribution terminal in the Jizan region,  a natural gas plant, and a Yasref refinery in the Red Sea port of Yanbu.

“The assault on Yasref facilities has led to a temporary reduction in the refinery’s production, which will be compensated for from the inventory,” Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry said in a statement. 

The ministry added that a number of distribution plants were hit, causing fire to erupt at one plant. Officials said the fire was controlled and no causalities were reported. 

Houthi spokesperson Yahya Sarea confirmed that the militant group attacked a number of facilities in Saudi Arabia. 

A Saudi-led military coalition said the militant group also targeted other locations, such as a water desalination plant in Al-Shaqeeq, a power station in Dhahran al Janub and a gas facility in Khamis Mushait. Saudi defense forces reported intercepting a ballistic missile and nine drones, Reuters reported. 

United Nations special envoy Hans Grundberg has said both sides have discussed a possible treaty to end the seven years of fighting, which has killed tens of thousands of people and left millions of others facing starvation, Reuters noted. 

U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan condemned the attack in a statement on Sunday. 

“The United States stands fully behind those efforts, and we will continue to fully support our partners in the defense of their territory from Houthi attacks. We call on the international community to do the same,” he said.