Houthi forces launched missiles and drones at four southern Saudi cities, injuring 73 people and setting fires at oil and utility facilities in a major escalation of regional hostilities.
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Yemen’s Houthi movement launched a wave of missile and drone attacks on four cities in southern Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, September 8, injuring 73 people and setting fires at energy and utility facilities, according to Saudi authorities.
The attacks struck Abha, Jazan, Najran and Khamis Mushait. Saudi-led coalition spokesperson Turki al-Malki said women and children were among those injured.
Saudi Arabia’s Energy Ministry said fires broke out at several oil and utility facilities in the country’s southern region, forcing operations at affected sites to be temporarily suspended. The ministry had not provided a complete assessment of the damage at the time of publication.
The Houthis said their operation targeted Saudi oil infrastructure and King Khalid Air Base in Khamis Mushait. The group claimed responsibility for the strikes, but individual targeting claims could not be independently confirmed.
Jazan is an important industrial and logistics centre on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast. The region also contains a major refinery with a reported processing capacity of approximately 400,000 barrels per day.
The attacks represent a significant expansion of renewed hostilities between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-aligned Houthi movement. Fighting between the parties had reduced following a truce in 2022, although a permanent peace settlement was never concluded.
Houthi-controlled media later reported that Saudi aircraft carried out strikes in Yemen’s Jubah district, east of Sanaa. Independent confirmation of the reported airstrikes remained limited as the situation continued to develop.
The escalation has implications beyond Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Attacks on energy infrastructure and shipping routes near the Red Sea could place additional pressure on global fuel supplies. Brent crude rose above $99 a barrel on Tuesday as markets reacted to widening regional tensions.
More than 18,500 people have reportedly fled fighting along Yemen’s western coast in recent days, according to figures cited by Reuters from the International Organization for Migration.
Saudi officials described Tuesday’s attacks as a serious escalation and said the coalition would take measures in response. The Houthis, meanwhile, warned that further Saudi military action would be met with additional attacks.
The full extent of the damage, the status of operations at the affected facilities and the likelihood of further retaliation remain under assessment.
