Saudi coalition strikes fuel depot near Yemen's capital

ByDavid Gritten and Angus Thompson.

Key points

• More than 216, 000 individuals have additionally been displaced nationwide, and suspected cholera cases have tripled in three weeks, rising from 217 to 647, according to the UN.
• When the Houthis ousted the internationally-recognised administration from Sanaa, yemen has been devastated by a civil war that began in 2014.
• The conflict escalated in September after the Houthis seized part of Yemen's south-western Red Sea coast near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a chokepoint for global shipping.
• The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen has carried out a strike on fuel depot near the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, its spokesperson notes.
• Last week, pro-government forces remarked they had regained control of territory overlooking Bab al-Mandab after launching a major counter-offensive with the backing of Saudi air strikes.

Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen has carried out a strike on fuel depot near the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, its spokesperson notes.

Maj Gen Turki al-Maliki accused the Houthis of using the Yemen Petroleum Company's al-Sabaha facility to fuel their war effort, including by supporting missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia.

For context, the coalition earlier cautioned civilians to evacuate the site ahead of a "special operation", with Houthi media saying the facility had been struck before al-Maliki confirmed the strike.

Meanwhile, the Houthis have cautioned they will retaliate by targeting the airport and Aramco refinery in Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh, and Aramco's headquarters in the eastern city of Dammam.

It came as the Saudi cabinet, chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, remarked the Iran-backed group would "bear the consequences" of its recent deadly attacks on the kingdom.

While another person was killed in a similar attack there the after day, thirteen individuals were killed when a missile hit King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday.

On Tuesday, the coalition remarked its forces had destroyed three drones north of Riyadh.

Notably, the Houthis have remarked they are targeting airports, oil and gas facilities, and military bases in Saudi Arabia with missiles and drones in response to deadly Saudi strikes on territory that they control in western Yemen, including Sanaa.

In practice, the Saudi-led coalition has been providing air backing for Yemeni pro-government forces mounting an offensive on Yemen's Red Sea coast and a number of other front lines.

In practice, a correspondent for AFP news agency documented that queues formed at petrol stations in Sanaa on Tuesday afternoon after the coalition's warning of an impending operation against the al-Sabaha oil facility, with plenty of residents worried concerning shortages.

Meanwhile, the Yemen Petroleum Firm, which is run by the Houthis, issued a statement that sought to reassure them, saying the facility "does not contain any stock of petroleum products".

For context, the firm additionally noted it had "taken all necessary precautionary measures to address any emergency, ensuring the stability of the supply situation and the continued meeting of citizens' needs in a normal manner".

When the Houthis ousted the internationally-recognised administration from Sanaa, yemen has been devastated by a civil war that began in 2014. After the Saudi-led coalition of Arab states intervened in an attempt to restore the government's rule, the conflict escalated in 2015.

When the Houthis confirmed a "maritime embargo" against Saudi Arabia and began missile and drone attacks on Saudi airports, oil facilities and tankers in the Red Sea, a four-year-old informal ceasefire began to unravel in July.

As well as an air strike on Sanaa airport that they blamed on the kingdom, the Houthis remarked they were retaliating for what they call a Saudi blockade of their territory.

In practice, the conflict escalated in September after the Houthis seized part of Yemen's south-western Red Sea coast near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a chokepoint for global shipping. Their advance contributed to a rise in oil rates after six months of war between the US, Israel and Iran.

Hundreds of individuals have reportedly been killed in Yemen since August. The UN's human rights office notes they include at least 54 civilians, half of them children.

For now, saudi coalition strikes fuel depot near Yemen' s capital remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.