Saudi oil refinery targeted in drone attack

Officials in Saudi Arabia have confirmed that an oil refinery in the kingdom’s capital of Riyadh was targeted using a bomb-laden drone.

An official spokesman at the Ministry of Energy said that the attack took place at around 4.40am on Thursday morning, according to Saudi Press Agency.

The spokesman added that the incident resulted “in a small fire” that has since been extinguished.

He said that no injuries or deaths resulted from the strike. Also, the supply of oil and its derivatives were unaffected by the incident.

He strongly condemned the attack, and said, “The kingdom asserts that such acts of sabotage and terrorism, repeatedly committed against vital installations and civilian facilities, do not target the Kingdom alone, but more broadly the security and stability of energy supply to the world, and thus negatively affecting the global economy.”

The spokesman called on all nations and organisations to stand together against such acts of sabotage and terrorism, and “to stop all groups carrying out or supporting these attacks.” However, the statement did not note the origin of the strike.

Earlier this week, it was reported that coalition forces intercepted and destroyed several drones launched by Yemen’s Houthi militia headed towards Saudi Arabia. The UAE condemned the Houthi militias’ attempt to attack civilians and civilian objects in Saudi. A statement by the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC) reiterated the UAE’s “full solidarity with Saudi Arabia over these subversive terrorist attacks and underscored its stance against all threats to the kingdom’s security and stability,” according to state-run news agency WAM. The UAE also underlined its support for all measures taken by Saudi authorities, stressing that the security of the UAE and that of Saudi Arabia “are indivisible and that any threat facing the kingdom is considered a threat to the security and stability of the UAE.”