Yemen's Houthis say they attacked Najran airport, Aramco facility in Saudi Arabia

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels said on Thursday they carried out two drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, targeting Najran Airport and a facility belonging to state oil giant Aramco in the kingdom's southern Najran region near the Yemeni border. Iran's Revolutionary Guards had earlier warned Saudi Arabia would be unable to contain the group.

What did the Houthis say about the Najran attacks?

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group used drones to carry out two operations. He said the first hit a sensitive Saudi site at Najran Airport, and the second struck the Aramco facility in the same region, according to a statement he posted on Telegram.

Why is Yemen attacking Saudi Arabia?

Yemen has been embroiled in more than a decade of civil conflict. In July, it became the latest country dragged into the wider Middle East war after the Houthis upended a 2022 truce with the Saudi-backed Yemeni government.

Hostilities resumed last month when the Houthis welcomed an Iranian plane in Sanaa, setting off a spate of tit-for-tat attacks. The group later announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and began striking its ships, airports and oil facilities.

What is happening near the Bab al-Mandab Strait?

A Yemeni minister told AFP this week that the Houthis were plotting to seize land along the Bab al-Mandab Strait. Control of the area would let the group further threaten the vital shipping route.

Three Houthi military sources told AFP the rebels were planning to advance south from their current territory. A spokesman for Yemeni government forces battling the Houthis near the waterway confirmed the same assessment.