The Saudi-led coalition in support of Yemen’s internationally recognized government pounded the Houthi rebels in Yemen with missile and drone attacks in retaliation for Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, which struck the Saudi Aramco oil facility in Jeddah, causing a huge fire in a storage that was still burning a day later and threatened a second such tank. The Houthi attack also targeted an oil storage facility in the capital, Riyadh.
The Saudi coalition airstrikes on Saturday hit a power plant, a fuel supply station and the state-run social insurance office in the Houthi capital of Sanaa. In response to the Saudi retaliatory attacks, the Houthis unilaterally declared a three-day cease-fire and said it was willing to negotiate a permanent cease-fire in attacks against the Saudis.
The attacks come days after the Gulf Cooperation Council announced that it would invite both sides in Yemen’s civil war for talks. The Houthis rejected the suggested venue for the talks, Riyadh, saying it would be willing to negotiate in a more neutral country.
The Houthi attack also came as the Saudi Arabian Formula One Grand Prix was getting underway. The Grand Prix was scheduled to go ahead as planned on Sunday, following practice runs on Saturday, in Jeddah despite the attack.