Yemeni army drones hit Saudi Arabia’s King Khaled airbase, Aramco refinery

The Yemeni army has launched a large-scale military operation inside Saudi Arabia, hitting the Arab kingdom’s Khaled airbase and Aramco refinery, in retaliation for a years-long brutal war by the Saudi-led coalition against impoverished Yemen.

In a statement carried by Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Masirah television network on Saturday, spokesman of Yemen’s Armed Forces Brigadier General Yahya Saree announced the successful implementation of the “Eighth Deterrence Balance Operation” by bombing a number of military and vital targets inside Saudi Arabia, using 14 domestically-developed combat drones.

He said four Sammad-3 (Invincible-3) drones bombed the King Khaled airbase near capital Riyadh, adding that four Sammad-2 (Invincible-2) drones also bombed military targets at King Abdullah International Airport in Jeddah and Aramco Jeddah refineries.

Separately, military targets at Abha International Airport in Saudi Arabia's southwestern province of Asir were bombarded by Sammad-3 drone and five Qasef-2K (Striker-2K) drones bombed various military targets in Abha, Jizan and Najran provinces. 

Yemen’s “armed forces affirm their ability to carry out more offensive operations against Saudi and Emirati enemies within the framework of the legitimate defense of Yemeni nation and homeland,” General Saree further said.

He also stressed that the Yemeni “armed forces, with the help of God Almighty, will face escalation with escalation until the aggression stops and the siege is lifted.”

Saudi Arabia and a number of its regional allies – including the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – launched the brutal war on Yemen in March 2015. The campaign was launched to eliminate popular Ansarullah movement and reinstall Yemen’s Riyadh-backed former President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.

Ansarullah has been running state affairs in the absence of an effective government in Yemen.

MG