Yemen’s Houthi forces said on Monday, October 26, they attacked Saudi Arabia's East-West crude oil pumping stations and Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport. The Saudi-led coalition reported it destroyed two ballistic missile launchers in Sanaa, including one used to target Riyadh, but did not immediately confirm the Houthi claims regarding the oil facilities.
The reported strikes follow an intensification of fighting that has effectively ended a 2022 United Nations-brokered truce. Hostilities increased after the Houthis advanced toward the Bab el-Mandeb Strait last month, a strategic shipping chokepoint. Saudi Arabia has since increased air strikes, while the Houthis have launched missiles and drones at Saudi airports, oil installations, and military bases.
On Wednesday, October 21, an attack at King Fahd International Airport in Dammam killed one person and injured eight others. This followed a strike on October 10 at Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport that killed 13 people, the deadliest assault in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade. According to the BBC, the U.S. State Department ordered the departure of non-emergency government employees and their families from Saudi Arabia on Thursday, October 22, citing the potential for rapid escalation.
Saudi officials stated the East-West pipeline was temporarily shut down in September as a precaution after a drone attack. The Houthis claimed further strikes this past Saturday on the pipeline and facilities in Yanbu and Rabigh. The group states its actions are a response to a Saudi blockade and an air strike on the Sanaa airport, while Saudi Arabia and the U.S. maintain that Iran provides the Houthis with weapons, a claim Iran denies.
The conflict directly impacts global energy markets and shipping. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait is a primary route for Gulf oil producers, and the Houthi "maritime embargo" has contributed to a surge in global oil prices. With the Strait of Hormuz largely closed due to conflict involving Iran, Saudi Arabia relies on the 746-mile East-West pipeline to move crude oil to the Red Sea for export. Any disruption to this infrastructure or the surrounding ports could further restrict the global supply of oil, potentially increasing fuel costs for households and businesses worldwide.
The failure of the 2022 truce sets a precedent for renewed large-scale regional conflict. The Saudi-led coalition, which entered the war in 2015 to support the internationally recognized government, has pledged continued "deterrent operational measures" in response to Houthi advances. Next steps include a meeting scheduled for Monday, October 26, in Tehran, where officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan are set to meet with Iranian officials to discuss regional coordination. This represents the first high-level contact between the three-nation bloc and Iran since the recent escalation began.