In Saudi Arabia, two children have been injured by fragments of a rocket shot from the sky that fell to the ground. The missile pieces also damaged several houses, the Saudi state news agency SPA reported based on the Ministry of Defense information.
The rocket was shot from the sky over the port city of Dammam in the oil-rich east of the country. According to the government, the missile came from Iran-affiliated Houthis, who are fighting the Saudi-backed government in Yemen.
The Saudi authorities also announced that they intercepted ballistic missiles fired from neighboring Yemen en route to the cities of Jizan and Najran in the south of the country, as well as three drones carrying explosives. According to state television El-Ekhbariya, which also reported on the interception, the coalition promised to take “severe measures” to protect civilians.
However, no casualties were reported in that missile attack. The incidents come four days after two drone strikes on Abha International Airport, which injured eight people, were blamed on the Houthi rebels by official Saudi media.
Oil network
In eastern Saudi Arabia, an important oil network has previously been the target of airstrikes. In 2019, oil facilities of state oil company Saudi Aramco were affected. As a result, Saudi oil production temporarily fell by half.
The attack also comes just hours before the new UN envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, takes office on Sunday.
A power struggle has been raging for years between a Saudi Arabian-backed government and Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. In 2015, a Saudi-led coalition launched a military campaign against the Houthis.
