A wave of Houthi attacks Tuesday on Saudi Arabia wounded more than 70 people and ignited fires at several oil facilities and utilities in the kingdom’s southern region, authorities said, a major escalation in the renewed conflict between an important US ally and the Iranian-backed rebels in Yemen.
The attacks come after weeks of escalating clashes between the Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces in Yemen, which shattered a four-year truce in the country’s civil war.
Fighting has raged on fronts including Yemen’s west coast, with government forces saying they have made territorial gains in the provinces of Hodeida, Taiz and Baydah. The Houthis have also launched attacks on Saudi oil facilities and tankers in the Red Sea.
The attacks early Tuesday hit “civilian and economic facilities” in the Saudi cities of Abha, Jazan, Najran and Khamis Mushait said Major General Turki al-Malki, a spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen, said in a statement.
Al-Malki said the attacks wounded 73 people, including women and children. He did not provide a breakdown or further details.
The attacks ignited fires at several oil facilities and utilities in Saudi Arabia’s southern region, the kingdom’s Energy Ministry said in a statement. Operations at the oil facilities and utilities were temporarily suspended, it said.
The ministry said firefighters were battling the fires Tuesday morning.