Houthis target Riyadh financial district as witnesses report damage to Aramco tower

Multiple witnesses told AFP on Sunday that Riyadh’s financial district was targeted and that Aramco tower was damaged. — AFP pic

First Published: Sunday, 08 Nov 2026 4:24 PM MYT

RIYADH, Nov 8 — Multiple witnesses told AFP on Sunday that Riyadh’s financial district was targeted and the area’s Aramco tower was damaged, after the Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis said it had intercepted missiles launched by the group.

“Aramco tower in KAFD has been targeted, that’s the sure thing,” said one witness, referring to the King Abdullah Financial District. Two other witnesses confirmed seeing damage to the building.

A 2022 truce that had paused fighting in Yemen’s long-running conflict fell apart in July and Saudi Arabia has since traded blows with the Houthis, who have struck Saudi airports, energy infrastructure and military sites.

The Iran-backed Houthis seized the Yemeni capital Sanaa in 2014, with the Saudi-led coalition entering the conflict a year later in support of the government.

The King Abdullah Financial District is one of the most visible manifestations of the kingdom’s ongoing economic and social reforms drive, with towering glass skyscrapers, high-end retail outlets and green spaces dotting the area.

Targeting the district would mark a major escalation in the kingdom’s fight with the Houthis.

The area is also home to residential housing and a large metro station with heavy commuter traffic during the morning rush hour.

Multiple floors of the Aramco tower appeared to have sustained damage, said another witness, with glass shattered and damage to part of the tower’s facade visible.

Syrian troops

The attack comes hours after the kingdom’s education ministry announced, late on Saturday, the return of in-person schooling after weeks of remote-learning in Riyadh following an earlier wave of strikes.

Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Malki, in a Sunday morning social media post, said that “air defences intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles launched by the Houthi terrorist militia towards Riyadh”, as loud explosions were heard in the Saudi capital.

The kingdom has been pressing allies for help as it comes under daily fire from the Houthis that recently seized swathes of the Red Sea coastline from the Riyadh-backed government.

Thousands of Syrian troops are set to deploy to Saudi Arabia and Yemen, with some already on the ground, multiple Yemeni officials told AFP.

The United Nations says more than 1,600 people have been killed and more than 300,000 displaced since fighting resumed in impoverished Yemen.

The fragile 2022 truce fell apart after the Houthis allowed an Iranian plane to land in Yemen’s capital Sanaa in defiance of Saudi control over Yemeni airspace, setting off a spate of attacks.

Later, the Houthis declared a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and began hitting its ships, territory and oil facilities, before seizing Yemen’s entire Red Sea coast in a lightning campaign. — AFP