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Houthi attacks target Saudi port, Aramco facilities: Ministry

Riyadh - Saudi forces thwart drone attack on Ras Tanura port, missile attack on Aramco area in Dhahran

An official spokesman at the Saudi Ministry of Energy said that a petroleum tank farm at the Ras Tanura Port in the Eastern Region, one of the largest oil shipping ports in the world, was attacked by a drone on Sunday, coming from the sea, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

The spokesman added that another deliberate attempt was also made to attack Saudi Aramco’s facilities. Shrapnel from a ballistic missile fell near Saudi Aramco’s residential area in the city of Dhahran, where thousands of the company’s employees and their families of different nationalities live.

The spokesman said that both attacks did not result in any injury or loss of life or property. In his statement, the spokesman stressed that the Kingdom condemned and criminalised such repeated acts of sabotage and hostility. “The Kingdom calls on nations and organisations of the world to stand together against these attacks, which are aimed at civilian objects and vital installations.

“Such acts of sabotage do not only target the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, but also the security and stability of energy supplies to the world, and therefore, the global economy. They affect the security of petroleum exports, freedom of world trade, and maritime traffic,” the spokesman added.

They also expose coasts and territorial waters to grave environmental catastrophes due to potential leakage of petroleum or petroleum products.

In the meantime, official spokesman for the Ministry of Defence Brigadier General Turki Al Malki said: "The failed attempts did not target the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s security and economic assets, but the core of global economy and its oil supplies, as well as the security of global energy.”

The attacking bomb-laden UAV that came via the sea was intercepted and destroyed prior to reaching its target. The ballistic missile that was launched to target Aramco facilities in Dhahran was intercepted and destroyed as well. The interception resulted in scattered debris that fell in close proximity to civilians and civilian objects.