Yemen's Houthis vow to continue targeting Saudi Aramco facilities

Yemen’s Houthi movement has vowed to continue striking petrochemical facilities in Saudi Arabia as it escalates its retaliation against the kingdom.

The Houthis, formally known as Ansar Allah, have attacked buildings belonging to Saudi Aramco, the massive, state-owned oil company that is crucial to the kingdom's economy.

The Houthis said on Wednesday that they had targeted Saudi Aramco facilities in Dhahran, the King Khalid International Airport and an Aramco refinery in Riyadh.

"This was carried out using a large number of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones," military spokesperson Yahya Saree said.

The group said it would continue operations against airports and oil facilities in the coming days, as tensions with Saudi Arabia escalate.

The kingdom's capital has faced unprecedented daily attacks by the Houthis for over a week, with strikes on the airport on Saturday killing 13 people and wounding hundreds.

In response, Riyadh targeted the Yemeni capital Sanaa.

Reuters reported on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia was planning to make its flagship Future Investment Initiative a hybrid event due to the attacks, allowing executives to attend remotely.

Some participants may still travel to Riyadh, including via airstrips outside the capital or in neighbouring Gulf states.

The kingdom has sought to keep attracting international investors despite escalating conflict with the Houthis.

An administrative building at Saudi Aramco’s Dhahran headquarters was attacked on Tuesday, according to the Energy Ministry, which said there were no casualties.

The International Monetary Fund's managing director, Kristalina Georgieva, said that the attacks on Saudi Arabia could impact people "everywhere" with rising energy costs.

"The Saudi economy is important for the region and the world, and in that sense, these developments have potentially negative spillovers for everybody, everywhere," Georgieva said at a news conference during the annual meetings of the IMF and the World Bank in Bangkok, according to AFP.

The recent Houthi attacks against the Gulf oil monarchy have been the worst since the Saudi-led military coalition entered the war in Yemen in 2015 to support the internationally recognised government against the group.