Yemen front and the region
Two foreign workers killed by drone debris at Shaybah as Washington orders embassy staff out of Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia's energy ministry said two foreign residents were killed and two injured by debris from a drone intercepted over the Shaybah oilfield, with production unaffected. Within the same hour, Reuters and AFP reported that Washington is moving to pull its embassy staff out of the kingdom over Houthi attacks. In Yemen, the army said Riyan airport in Mukalla was targeted for a fourth time, and civilians continued to fall in Taiz.
Summary
- ConfirmedSaudi energy ministry: a Filipino and a Nepali killed, a Pakistani and an Indian injured by debris from a drone intercepted over Shaybah; operations unaffected.
- ConfirmedReuters and AFP: US orders embassy staff and families to leave Saudi Arabia, with differing accounts of the order's scope.
- ConfirmedYemeni army: the Houthis targeted Riyan airport in Mukalla for the fourth time; the Houthis claimed the attack.
- ConfirmedIranian state media: several explosions heard in Sirik overlooking the Strait of Hormuz, cause unknown.
- AttributedThe US chargé d'affaires for Yemen accuses the Houthis of recruiting children and sending them to the front.
Foreign residents killed by drone debris at Shaybah, plus two injured
18:59ZNumber of times Riyan airport in Mukalla has been targeted, according to the Yemeni army
19:06ZDevelopments in this window
- ConfirmedSaudi Arabia - Gulf
Washington orders embassy staff and families out of Saudi Arabia
AFP quoted a diplomatic source as saying all American staff and their families were ordered to leave the embassy in Saudi Arabia, and that families of staff in the UAE, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain were also ordered out. Reuters earlier cited three US officials as saying the State Department was preparing such an order in anticipation of renewed Houthi attacks. No official statement has yet set out the exact scope.
- ConfirmedStrait of Hormuz
Explosions heard in Sirik overlooking the Strait of Hormuz
AFP quoted Iran's IRNA news agency as saying several explosions were heard in the Karpan area of Sirik in Hormozgan province. IRNA said local sources had not disclosed the nature of the blasts. There is no account yet of their source or of any damage.
- AttributedYemen
US diplomat accuses the Houthis of recruiting children
The US chargé d'affaires for Yemen, Neil Hope, accused the Houthis of recruiting children, indoctrinating them and sending them to the front lines. He said the recruited children are not the sons of the group's leaders but of ordinary Yemeni families. The Houthis have not responded.
Source: ajel.sa - ConfirmedHadramout - Mukalla
Army: Houthis targeted Riyan airport for the fourth time
Government forces spokesman Col. Majed al-Nuzaili said the Houthis targeted Riyan International Airport in Mukalla for the fourth time, calling it an attempt to impose a blockade. The airport had come under drone and ballistic missile fire since the morning. The Houthis had claimed the attack, saying they hit military equipment flown in by cargo aircraft. No casualties were announced.
Source: yemenmonitor.com alasimahonline.com - ConfirmedSaudi Arabia - Eastern Province
Two foreign residents killed by debris from drone intercepted over Shaybah
A Saudi energy ministry source said air defences on Wednesday morning intercepted a drone trying to hit a facility at Aramco's Shaybah field. Debris set fire to a contractor's vehicle outside the plant's perimeter, killing residents from the Philippines and Nepal and injuring two others from Pakistan and India. The ministry said operations were not affected. The statement did not name who launched the drone.
- AttributedTaiz
Civilian killed, girl and woman wounded in Kahlan, Sabr al-Mawadim
Local sources told Khabar news agency that Amer Abdullah Saeed was killed by sniper fire, and a four-year-old girl and a 60-year-old woman were wounded by shelling on Kahlan village. The agency blamed the Houthis for the shelling and sniper fire. The Houthis have not commented.
Source: khabaragency.net