Houthis Claim Drone Strikes on Riyadh Airport and Saudi East-West Oil Pipeline

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said on the group's al-Masirah television that one drone had targeted the airport in the Saudi capital and two others had struck Pumping Station No. 3 on the pipeline east of the city. He said the operation had achieved its objectives. Xinhua, which carried the statement, said it could not verify the attacks, casualties or damage, and that Saudi authorities had not commented.

The pipeline is the more consequential of the two targets for energy markets. It carries crude from the kingdom's eastern oilfields across the country to export terminals on the Red Sea, giving Saudi Arabia a route to market that does not pass through the Strait of Hormuz. That bypass has become more valuable during the war with Iran, which has disrupted shipping through the strait for months. The International Energy Agency said this week that Gulf crude exports reached 18.4 million barrels a day in October, still 26% below prewar levels.

In a separate statement, Sarea said two ballistic missiles had hit gatherings of Saudi forces in the Al-Tuwal area of the southwestern Jazan region, and claimed dozens of personnel had been killed or wounded, including Sudanese nationals. The group also claimed missile strikes on Saudi-linked troop positions in eastern al-Jawf, in the Kharaz and Khor Umairah areas of Lahj, and on weapons depots at the Ras Abas base in Aden.

The claims follow heavier fighting between the Houthis and Yemeni government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition, particularly around the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern entrance to the Red Sea. The Houthis have controlled Sanaa since late 2014, and the Saudi-led intervention began in 2015.

Gulf states have pressed for more international attention to the attacks they face. On Thursday the Gulf Cooperation Council told the UN Security Council that its members had been targeted by more than 7,000 missiles and drones, and called for an immediate halt to attacks on Gulf states and shipping.

Diplomacy around the wider conflict moves to China next week. A senior US official told reporters on Friday that President Donald Trump intends to raise the Iran war in a three-way meeting with Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin in Shenzhen on Thursday, while Ukraine will be handled on a separate negotiating track.