Saudi Arabia has been the target of another Houthi attack for the second time in six days
On 25 February, the facilities of the Aramco oil company in the city of Jeddah were attacked by Houthis. These attacks caused a fire in two of the storage tanks, according to the France24 news agency. Fortunately, the situation was resolved without any casualties. The rebel offensive spread to the Saudi cities of Jazan, Zahran al-Janub and Samtah.
Initially neither the Saudi government nor state-owned Aramco acknowledged the rebel-caused fire. However, Houthi leader Yahya Sarea issued a televised statement acknowledging responsibility for the attack. He reported that they had damaged oil facilities with missiles and drones. Sarea also said they had hit several targets in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.
Later, the military coalition intervening in Yemen for Riyadh reported the attack on the oil company on Al-Ijbariy television channel. They also stressed that they had managed to bring the fire under control quickly.
According to the French agency, Houthi attacks on 'energy installations in the Kingdom' have increased in recent months, one of the world's 'largest exporters' of oil.
These attacks cause serious delays in the delivery of oil to other countries. Faced with this situation, the Saudi government reported that it "will not be responsible for any shortage of oil supply in world markets", and demanded that the international community "take action".
During this communiqué, the government also blamed Iran for continuing to arm rebel groups. Furthermore, it stressed that these aggressions will affect the kingdom's oil production capacity, "and its ability to meet its obligations to global markets". Following this, Tehran denied the accusations.
The US State Department's deputy spokeswoman quickly condemned the attacks, calling them "unacceptable" during a briefing. She also said the attacks had "affected Saudi infrastructure, as well as schools, mosques and workplaces", and had "endangered civilians, including US citizens".
Dr Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the UAE president, explained on his Twitter account that "Houthi terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia are a continuation of an approach that refuses to end the war and seeks to undermine ceasefire and dialogue initiatives". He added that "the continued targeting of civilians in and around Yemen is a terrorist act that reveals the true face of the Houthis to the region and the international community".
Gargash affirmed the UAE's support for the "Kingdom of Saudi Arabia", and stressed that the two countries would continue to work together to "address the challenges to ensure our common security and stability".
The target of Friday's Huti attacks was the free practice venue for the Saudi Arabian Formula One Grand Prix. Following the attack on Jeddah, people at the F1 track could see a large cloud of smoke in the distance. Despite this, the company in charge of promoting the race, Saudi Motors Corp, said that "the weekend's race schedule will continue as planned".
Nabeel Khoury, a former US diplomat, told Al Jazeera that the timing of the attacks was significant. According to him, "every time they hit targets in Saudi Arabia or the UAE, it's a blow against tourism in these countries: you can organise car races and international games as if nothing is happening while we are under siege and attacked daily from there," he told the television channel.