In brief
The Saudi-led coalition launched a strike on the al‑Sabaha fuel depot near Sanaa, accusing the Houthis of using the facility to support missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia. Major General Turki al‑Maliki warned that the facility was a military target, while the Yemen Petroleum Company said it contained no petroleum inventory. In response, the Houthis threatened attacks on Saudi airports and Aramco facilities. The strike follows recent deadly hits on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport and Saudi air defenses destroying drones. Amid the conflict, Yemen’s civilians face shortages, displacement, and a rising cholera outbreak, deepening the humanitarian crisis.
A Saudi‑led coalition airstrike hit the al‑Sabaha fuel depot just outside the Houthi‑controlled city of Sanaa, the coalition’s spokesperson said on Tuesday. The attack targeted a facility run by the Yemen Petroleum Company, which the coalition says is being used to fuel the Houthi war effort.
Maj. Gen. Turki al‑Maliki accused the Houthis of using the depot to launch or support missile and drone strikes on Saudi Arabia. He said the facility had been hit “before it was confirmed” and warned civilians to evacuate the area ahead of the operation.
The Houthis, in turn, have threatened to retaliate by targeting Saudi airports and Aramco’s flagship refinery in Riyadh and its headquarters in Dammam, saying that any future Saudi strikes on Houthi territory will be answered with equal force.
In recent days the Saudi cabinet, led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, condemned “the recent deadly attacks on the kingdom” and warned that the Iran‑backed group would “bear the consequences.” A missile strike on Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport killed 13 people over two days, and Saudi forces destroyed three drones north of the capital.
The strike comes after the Houthis’ July drone and missile campaign, which targeted Saudi airbases, oil facilities and shipping lanes near the Bab al‑Mandab Strait. The campaign prompted Saudi air support for Yemeni pro‑government forces, who have recently regained control of key coastal positions.
Yemen’s civil war, which erupted in 2014, has resulted in more than 216,000 displaced civilians and a surge in cholera cases. The UN reports at least 54 civilian casualties, including children, since August.
Residents reported forming queues at petrol stations after the coalition warned of the operation, but the Yemen Petroleum Company reassured that no petroleum stock was stored at the site. It pledged to keep supply chains stable and meet citizens’ needs normally.
