ABNA24 - An Aramco administrative building in eastern Saudi Arabia has been targeted, triggering a fire, Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry says amid warnings from Yemen.
On Wednesday, the ministry said the fire broke out a day earlier at the facility belonging to the state-owned oil giant in the city of Dhahran.
Saudi authorities, meanwhile, cited “interception” of several missiles across the kingdom.
State news agency SPA, citing the civil defense, reported interception of a cruise missile in the capital Riyadh, while the Saudi-led coalition targeting Yemen also said it had intercepted a cruise missile over al-Kharj in Riyadh Province and another missile in the Haradh area in the kingdom’s Eastern Province. Early-warning sirens went off in Riyadh amid the reported incidents.
In March 2015, Saudi Arabia and its allies imposed a blockade on Yemen and launched a sweeping campaign of military aggression against the impoverished country, backed by military, political, and logistical support from the United States and several other Western countries.
The war went on to claim the lives of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis, without Saudi Arabia managing to achieve its main objective of reinstating its favorite officials in Yemen, who had fled the country amid political uncertainty.
On July 20, the Sana’a administration, which has been running the country ever since the Saudi-backed authorities’ departure, declared a naval blockade against the kingdom as a means of pressuring Riyadh into lifting its blockade.
Towards responding to the blockade, the Yemeni Armed Forces have been cementing their gains around the strategic Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
‘Leave before it’s too late’
Also on Tuesday, the president of Yemen’s Supreme Political Council said the country would continue confronting Saudi Arabia until Riyadh ended its war and blockade against Yemen, and until the nation reclaimed its national resources and ensured the withdrawal of foreign forces.
In remarks to Yemen’s SABA News Agency, Mahdi al-Mashat described Yemen’s military operations against Saudi Arabia as justified, saying their primary objective was to end 12 years of aggression and siege.
He reaffirmed Sanaa’s determination to continue confronting Riyadh, including by striking its military build-ups to thwart “an objective to occupy Yemen.”
Addressing Saudi Arabia directly, he said, “The sensible one among those involved in the invasion of Yemen is the one who takes the initiative to leave it before it is too late.”
Al-Mashat denounced Saudi Arabia for leading a policy of weakening the Yemeni state and preventing the country from benefiting from its natural resources and wealth.
He said Yemenis now had a historic opportunity to consolidate their national cause and establish a strong and just state free from subservience to foreign powers and external dependency.
Al-Mashat also condemned “the crimes of Saudi aggression and the targeting of civilians,” describing the attacks as evidence of Riyadh’s “brutality” and reasserting Yemen’s right to respond.
The official additionally condemned Saudi Arabia for turning Bab el-Mandeb into a “warzone,” but maintained that international navigation remained safe and that Yemen was committed to fulfilling its international obligations concerning maritime traffic.
‘Riyadh acting in line with Zionist plans’
Al-Mashat reiterated Sana’a’s rejection of Saudi allegations that Yemen had targeted Medina, describing the accusations as evidence of Riyadh’s helplessness and failure and condemning Riyadh for acting in accordance with “Zionist plans.”
The official warned Saudi Arabia against any attempt to implicate Yemenis in targeting holy sites, declaring that holy sites constituted a red line and cautioning that Sana’a would not remain silent in the face of “reckless actions.”
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