Yemen’s Tehran-aligned Houthis claimed responsibility for a drone attack on Saudi Arabia’s Aramco refinery in Jazan early Sunday. Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry said a fire broke out at the facility, was later extinguished and caused no injuries; it did not give a cause.
The claim came two days after Saudi Arabia signed a defence pact with Turkey and Pakistan, as negotiations over reopening the Strait of Hormuz remained unresolved and Iran issued new conditions for restoring navigation.
What the Houthis and Saudi Arabia said
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree said the group used a drone to target the refinery in south-west Saudi Arabia. In a separate statement, he said the Houthis had also carried out missile and drone strikes on the Yemeni Red Sea port city of Mocha, which is controlled by Yemen’s internationally recognised, Saudi-backed governing body in Aden.
The Jazan refinery processes 400,000 barrels of crude oil a day, according to the supplied report. The Houthis have previously struck Aramco sites in Jazan and the Red Sea oil export hub of Yanbu. The Saudi energy ministry said authorities were dealing with the refinery incident but did not provide further details.
Related coverage: Mecca defence pact adds pressure on Israel before its October election.
Why the attack claim came amid Hormuz tensions
The incident followed Iran’s demand that the United States change its “behaviour” before the Strait of Hormuz can reopen. Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said the US must end the war with Tehran and its armed allies, lift sanctions, end the naval blockade of Iranian ports, withdraw its military from the area, compensate Iran for war damage and release frozen assets unconditionally.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran and Oman were close to an agreement on navigation through the strait, including the determination of a transit route, but said reopening remained subject to other conditions. Oman said talks were continuing in a “positive and constructive atmosphere” and condemned attacks on ships in the waterway.
Saudi defence pact adds to regional uncertainty
The Saudi-Turkish-Pakistani accord was signed on Friday in response to regional instability linked in the source material to the US-Israel war on Iran. It says an armed attack against any one of the three countries would be regarded as an attack on all, and is intended to strengthen collective deterrence against aggression.
More context: Iran-Oman Talks Show Progress on Strait of Hormuz Shipping.
Turkey’s foreign minister, Hakan Fidan, said the alliance was not directed against Iran or any other country. It remained unclear whether or how Turkey or Pakistan would participate in a Saudi response to the latest attacks. There was no immediate US comment on Iran’s demands.
Also read: UK and France remain cautious on Strait of Hormuz coalition.
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