Yemen's Houthis Say They Struck Aramco Facility in Riyadh With Missiles, Drones

Oct 3 (Reuters) - Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said on Saturday they had targeted an Aramco facility in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, with ballistic missiles and drones, saying the attack was retaliation for Saudi strikes on Sanaa and other Yemeni provinces.

A witness told Reuters that a large plume of smoke and fire was seen earlier on Saturday in the vicinity of an Aramco facility in Riyadh. There was no immediate confirmation from Saudi authorities of an attack on an Aramco facility, and Aramco did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The claim comes amid escalating hostilities between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, who have stepped up attacks on Saudi cities and energy infrastructure. A Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen in 2015 after the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa. The conflict has since become a wider regional confrontation and one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.

If confirmed, the reported strike would highlight the risks to the kingdom's oil infrastructure and raise fresh concerns about regional stability.

The Houthis said last week they had attacked Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu with missiles and drones. Saudi Arabia said at the time that it had intercepted six ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis toward Taif and the Yanbu area, but did not report damage to Aramco facilities.

There was no independent confirmation of Saturday's reported attack, and details of the target and any damage remained unclear.