Strikes on Dhahran and Riyadh

Houthi forces said on Wednesday, 14 October, that they had hit Aramco facilities and Riyadh's airport and promised further attacks. Their military spokesman, Yahya Saree, called the action a high-level operation and said strikes deep inside Saudi territory would continue in the coming days, aimed at airports and oil facilities.

The Yemeni armed forces carried out a high-level military operation against Aramco in Dhahran, in the Eastern Province, King Khalid International Airport and the Aramco refinery in Riyadh.

Europa Press reported that the Houthis claimed two Aramco refineries among their targets. The Saudi Energy Ministry, however, said an attack overnight into Tuesday, 13 October, hit an administrative building of Aramco in Dhahran and caused a limited fire, with no injuries. Two insiders said the blaze began on the ninth floor of the south wing and spread between the sixth and tenth floors, badly damaging the upper three floors, which house the office of Aramco chief executive Amin Nasser. Aramco had not issued a statement, and some employees were asked to work from home.

In Riyadh, the Saudi-led coalition said it had intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile fired at the city, according to spokesman Turki al-Maliki, who posted the announcement on X. Saudi Civil Protection said falling debris from two intercepted cruise missiles injured four people and lightly damaged 15 residential buildings. AFP reported strong explosions over the capital, and residents received phone alerts warning of an air threat, with the alert lifted minutes later. Al Maliki also reported interceptions of seven missiles and three drones overnight into Wednesday, 14 October, including attacks on Dammam and the regions of Riyadh, Al Jarj and Sur.

Civilian casualty claims

Sari said in a social media post that Saudi aircraft had carried out 104 air raids and missile strikes against civilian infrastructure in the previous 24 hours, in Sanaa and in the provinces of Dhamar, Taiz, Amran, Lahj, Al-Jawf, Marib, Sa'ada and Hodeidah. He said the strikes were flown by F-15 and Typhoon jets from the Khamis Mushayt and Ta'if air bases, with missile attacks from Najran, and that the total of Saudi air and missile raids since the latest escalation had reached 2,281. These figures come only from the Houthi side. Houthi authorities counted at least five civilians dead in reports published in the early hours of 14 October.

Coalition operation against fuel sites

The Saudi-led coalition backing the internationally recognised government of Yemen announced an operation to neutralise what it called the Houthis' capabilities, accusing the group of using civilian facilities for military purposes. Al Maliki named the central Al Sabaha station in Sanaa, underground fuel reserves, fuel tanks and fuel transport and unloading terminals in Hodeidah, Sanaa and Damar. He said the coalition had taken all possible precautions to avoid civilian casualties or damage. Sari rejected this account, saying the Al Sabaha facility had no military value, and warned that any attack on Sanaa would receive a hard and painful response in Riyadh.

Humanitarian strain and Moscow's position

The International Committee of the Red Cross said hospitals in Yemen's fighting areas were receiving more war-wounded than ever, in some cases more than 700 a week. ICRC health coordinator Feras Abusamra said emergency staff were under enormous pressure, and that only a small share of functioning facilities could treat seriously wounded patients, with shortages of surgical supplies, anesthetics, oxygen and medicines.

Russia's deputy foreign minister, Georgy Borisenko, told Interfax that Moscow had informed Houthi representatives that attacks on civilian infrastructure, including in Saudi Arabia, are unacceptable.

We have informed representatives of the Ansar Allah movement that attacks on civilian infrastructure are unacceptable.

He added that Russia had received no specific requests for mediation but was in contact with its Saudi partners.

Background to the escalation

Europa Press reported that the Houthis launched a large-scale offensive in the west of Yemen on 3 September, and have since carried out missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, including several airports, in response to coalition support for government operations. Government forces announced a large-scale offensive on 4 October to recover recently captured territory and advance toward Sanaa, held by the rebels since 2014. AP describes the rebels as Iran-backed.