Saudi Airports and Oil Facilities Hit by Strikes, Escalating Middle East Tensions

Airstrikes hit an international airport and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia on the 21st (local time), causing casualties and spreading the clouds of war across the Middle East amid ongoing clashes with the Houthis.

According to foreign news outlets including AP and AFP, King Fahd International Airport, located in Dammam in eastern Saudi Arabia, was struck in the evening on the same day.

The General Authority of Civil Aviation of Saudi Arabia announced in a statement that one person was killed and eight others were injured in the strike.

The Saudi aviation authority stated that the conditions of the injured ranged from minor to severe, and that it is currently assessing the scale of property damage to airport facilities.

Saudi authorities have not disclosed specific details regarding the perpetrators or the nature of the attack.

The Houthis have not yet released any comments regarding the attack.

However, foreign media outlets noted that the Houthis have recently intensified their attacks on Saudi airports and other targets. Given that King Fahd Airport has previously been targeted by Houthi missile strikes, authorities presume the Houthis are behind the latest attack as well.

The Shaybah oil field, one of the world's largest oil fields located in southeastern Saudi Arabia, was also targeted by a drone attack.

The Saudi Ministry of Energy announced that it intercepted a drone targeting the Shaybah oil field facilities operated by Aramco earlier that day.

Debris from the intercepted drone fell onto a subcontractor's vehicle parked on the outskirts of the oil field, sparking a fire. The incident left two workers, nationals of the Philippines and Nepal, dead, while two others from Pakistan and India were injured.

Saudi Arabia is also stepping up the intensity of its attacks targeting the Houthis.

According to Russia's RIA Novosti news agency, the Houthi-run health ministry announced that a fishing boat came under a Saudi attack on the 20th in Taiz Governorate near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in southwestern Yemen.

The Houthi health ministry stated that eight fishermen were killed in the attack, criticizing Saudi Arabia for targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure, including fishermen whose sole livelihood is the sea.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea stated on the 20th that Saudi Arabia launched 93 airstrikes targeting Yemen over a 24-hour period.
 
Oil tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz are also not escaping the shadows of war.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) stated that two oil tankers caught fire after being struck by unidentified projectiles in the strait.

One tanker was attacked in waters approximately 20 kilometers off the coast of Oman, while another was struck at a point about 55 kilometers off the coast of Iraq.

No casualties have been reported yet.

Damages continue to mount in the Strait of Hormuz; on the 20th, three oil tankers collided with mines, resulting in fires and other damage.

As the conflict in the Middle East worsens, the possibility of U.S. intervention is also growing.

The U.S. State Department issued an evacuation order on the same day for staff members and their family members working at the U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia.

According to diplomatic sources in the Middle East, family members of U.S. embassy staff residing in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jordan, Qatar, and Bahrain are also packing their bags.

Foreign media pointed out that the U.S. had previously issued evacuation orders for embassy staff in the Middle East prior to initiating a war with Iran last February.

Reuters interpreted this as a potential signal that a U.S. military operation against the Houthis is imminent.

(File Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.