▲ Smoke rises following an airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition in the Houthi-controlled Yemeni capital of Sanaa on the 9th (local time). (File Photo: Yonhap News)
Amid escalating military clashes between Saudi Arabia and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels, the Saudi-led coalition has carried out sudden airstrikes targeting major oil facilities in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa, which is controlled by the Houthi rebels.
On the 13th (local time), Al-Masirah TV, operated by the Houthi rebels, reported that the Saudi-led coalition struck the Al-Sabah central base (fuel depot) of the Yemen Petroleum Company (YPC) located on the outskirts of Sanaa.
The YPC claimed that there were currently no petroleum products stockpiled at the facility and that the airstrike did not affect oil reserves or the supply chain.
The airstrike was carried out immediately after the coalition issued an emergency evacuation order to civilians near the facility ahead of the launch of operations.
The airstrike is seen as a retaliatory measure for a recent fatal attack launched by the Houthi rebels on Saudi Arabia's King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.
Previously, the Houthis targeted major airports for a week in opposition to Saudi Arabia's intervention in the Yemeni civil war. On the 10th, a missile attack targeting Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed 13 people, marking the worst human toll in Saudi Arabia in the past decade.
In response, the Saudi cabinet, chaired by de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, vowed strong retaliation.
With the Houthi rebels threatening to strike major oil facilities, which form the core of Saudi Arabia's economic infrastructure, further retaliatory airstrikes are anticipated.
Yahya Saree, the military spokesperson for the Houthis, warned of "harsh and painful retaliation" against Saudi Arabia, mentioning the headquarters of the state-owned oil company Aramco in Dhahran, eastern Saudi Arabia, and oil refineries in the capital, Riyadh.
The reignited civil war in Yemen is rapidly expanding into a broader conflict, compounded by the spillover effects of a recently triggered dispute between the United States and Iran.
After Iran blockaded the Strait of Hormuz in February, the Houthi rebels seized control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the entrance of the Red Sea, an alternative energy shipping route, blocking Saudi Arabia's oil export paths.
Saudi Arabia is currently deploying a massive military operation to push back the Houthi rebels who have advanced near the strait.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held separate phone calls with Crown Prince Mohammed on this day to discuss the situation.
On the other hand, Iran, Saudi Arabia's archrival in the region and a supporter of the Houthi rebels, announced the previous day that it would step in to mediate between the two sides.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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