Chinese parts fuel advanced Houthi missiles: Aramco hit & Taiz falling in humiliating Saudi war

The Iran-backed Houthis are doubling down. In fact, they have vowed to press on with attacks on airports and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia. This means a lot. And this also comes as the Saudi kingdom has already been left stunned following that lightning offensive of the Houthis and those attacks over the last few days. A lot has happened. Remember those weekend attacks at the Riyadh airport left shockwaves around the world and things are looking far worse now. According to a Reuters report, Tuesday night's attack on Saudi Aramco's base in the eastern city of Bahrain caused a fire that spread across several floors. Remember, earlier Saudi Energy Minister had said the strike caused a limited fire. The Reuters report saying the strike, as per sources, reportedly caused extensive damage to the headquarters of the oil giant Saudi Aramco. And the report adds, citing sources that operations at Aramco were continuing normally with employees working from home. Just for context here, Saudi Arabia has faced widening Houthi strikes over the past weeks, including the attack on the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday. The Saudi-led coalition saying it had intercepted a ballistic missile fired by the Houthis towards Riyadh on Wednesday itself, and several loud booms were heard in the Saudi capital. Riyadh's international airport has come under attack four times, including Saturday's attack, which was the deadliest in Saudi Arabia in a decade. Authorities have closed the airport until the 17th of October. Airlines have cancelled flights to Saudi Arabia as well. You see, when you look at the bigger picture, given all that's happening, these attacks assume greater significance. The escalating conflict has dealt a major blow to the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's ambitious plans to transform and diversify the Saudi economy and reduce its reliance on oil. And the Houthis say they have been retaliating for the kingdom's backing of the Yemeni government forces in the Yemen war that, remember, restarted last month. In fact, according to the Houthis, they say they have launched ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones. at Saudi Aramco facilities and the Riyadh airport and an Aramco refinery in Riyadh. Things have reached a point where the Saudi crown prince himself is feeling the heat to the extent that Mohammed bin Salman has reportedly been moved from one heavily guarded palace to another as the Houthi attacks on the kingdom grow more intense. According to the Wall Street Journal earlier which cited officials familiar with his movements. He is being shuttled between palaces that are heavily guarded and fitted with bunkers. A hand-picked security team reportedly guarding him as the fighting escalates. Meanwhile, the Red Cross has said hospitals across Yemen are struggling to cope with that sharp rise in war casualties as the fighting intensified along multiple front lines. Interestingly, the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has opposed the Israeli proposal reportedly for military involvement in Yemen because of the likely backlash among the kingdom's public, as per Israel's Haaretz News, citing diplomatic sources. Saudi Arabia, remember, is struggling to shield key infrastructure and economic assets from further Houthi attacks. And as of now, no concrete help is coming its way. To stay up to speed with the latest news, download the WION app and subscribe to our YouTube channel.